A New Piece to the Puzzle
by Softball20
Summary: Patch and Nora have a daughter who will grow up to be a new pawn in the fight between long dead fallen angels and nephilim who have gotten too use to peace, but at least has her own guardian angel at her side. Becca Fitzpatrick owns all of her characters and any including story line. Please R&R.
1. A New Piece

Nora's POV

2 Weeks Along

I sat on the edge of our bed, holding the small but significant pregnancy test in my hands, with a clear plus sign. From down the hall, I could hear the front door open and close, and I knew Patch was home. My stomach churned as I heard his footsteps echo closer and closer to the bedroom door. We weren't _trying_. Pregnancy was kind of the last thing we'd been thinking about over the five years we'd been together in _that_ way. The door opened and I couldn't bring my eyes to meet Patch's. I knew he wouldn't leave me, but I didn't know how he would react or if he even wanted a child.

"Angel, what's wrong?" He asked softly, squatting down in front of me to see my face, and then spotted the pregnancy test. I'd moved my thumb over the reader before he could catch a look at the answer.

"Do you want a baby?" I whispered. He gently grasped my wrists, moving his thumbs in slow, comforting circles.

"It's my baby, of course I want it," I felt tears fill the rim of my eyes as I bit my lip to fight down the enormous smile that would stretch them. Patch's answering smile was breathtaking and I wrapped my arms around his neck as he stood us both up. He held on to me for a long time before pulling away just enough to look down at my stomach. In wonder he said softly, "You've got my baby in there."

"Yes," He wiped my tears away, a smile still curving the edges of his mouth, and I leaned up for a kiss. I pulled away when a sudden thought occurred to me.

"I have to call my mom,"

"Maybe it would be better to break the news in person, maybe over dinner," Patch said, hands coming to rest lightly on my stomach again.

"Will you call her? I need a nap," The unusual tiredness of the last couple of weeks was finally explained.

"I will," He helped me onto the mattress and covered me with the blanket at the foot of the bed. I was asleep before he'd left the room. A few hours later, I picked up on quiet chatter, and rose to investigate. Patch sat on one of the bar stools while my mother worked around the kitchen to prepare dinner.

"_She got here awfully fast," _

"_I told her we had important news to share. Besides, she's missed you," _I felt a little bit guilty, some times I was so absorbed in Patch that I kind of forgot the rest of the world existed, including my mom.

"Oh Nora, did you have a good nap sweetheart?" She cooed, giving me a quick hug before shuffling over to the oven. I sat next to Patch and he rested his arm on the back of my chair. I couldn't begin to fathom how to explain what had happened to my mother. I unknowingly pressed my hand to my stomach, as if offering comfort to the small life inside, and drawing strength from the thought.

*********After a Delicious Dinner**********

"So what's the important news I'm so excited to hear about?" My mom finally hinted after I'd danced around the subject all night.

"I'm pregnant mom," It took her a moment to think through my words before she squealed with delight and pulled me into a tight hug. Patch had his smirkish half smile plastered on his face.

"I'm going to be a grandma! I can't wait to go shopping with you for all the baby stuff! It's going to be such great fun!"

"Not only that, I just purchased ten acres of land to build our own house, on the outskirts of Clearwater of course," He added quickly when my mom's eyes grew wide. I raised an eyebrow at him, but besides that, didn't make a comment. The rest of the night went by smoothly as my mom stayed for a long talk before going home. Patch kissed my neck as I stood at the window of our apartment to watch my mom drive away, a huge smile still on her face.

"I thought we were looking, not buying yet," I whispered to him as I rested my hands on his elbows as his arms wrapped around me.

"Well it was a steal and there will be plenty of room to build the house we want,"

"I guess that guest bedroom will be the baby's bedroom and we'll just have to add another in the basement," He nodded in agreement.

"We'll figure that out tomorrow, tonight, you need to sleep," I didn't object as he carried me to bed.

20 Weeks Along 

"Well, you are looking at your baby girl," The doctor announced with a pleased smile while Patch and I gazed at the ultrasound screen. Patch kissed my forehead before setting his hand on the top of my expanding belly.

"Wow," The doctor whispered as we watched our little girl reach out and press her hand to where she must have felt Patch's. A tear rolled down my cheek in happiness at the look on his face as he moved his hand to a different part of my belly, again she managed to move, and this time pressed her little foot to him. I pressed my hand just a little bit above Patch's and she reached out to press her hand to mine and I could feel the barely-there pressure of it through my skin.

"I've never seen anything like it . . . She is looking very healthy and completely on track with her growth. You can expect to see her around New Years," He smiled before cleaning off my belly and leaving the room. Patch helped me sit up before a nurse came in to hand us the ultrasound photographs before we left.

"A girl," Patch murmured under breath with a small smile as he began to drive us to the local hardware store. I'd wanted to get paint samples to begin choosing colors for our house that was now under construction.

"That's a good thing, right?" I asked as I rubbed my belly. I had a feeling she was sleeping now because she tended to kick a little when she felt my hands impinging on her space a little.

"As long as she doesn't have mysterious boys coming into her bedroom in the middle of the night," I grinned before laughing.

"All that sneaking around lead to marriage and then her, so it really can't be that bad of a thing to have mysterious boys meeting her in the middle of the night," I teased back, but he didn't seem nearly as impressed, instead his eyes grew hard as he began to concentrate on something as we pulled up in front of the store.

"Security system, definitely going to need one of those," I heard him say as we walked inside with our fingers linked.

"What about this color for her room," It was a bright, girlish pink.

"She's going to have nightmares of neon Nora, I like this one better," It was a soft, light pink.

"Maybe we should do purple instead, pink is too mainstream anyway, how about this lavender color with this light blue for the trim?" I showed him the two swatches and he nodded in agreement, "Much better." For the rest of time, we picked colors for the other rooms of the house, one of which ended up with a couple of hot kisses to convince me about the color for the family room, this time, I'd let Patch get his way.

At the Hospital

"Babe!" Vee squealed as she burst through the hospital room door. I pressed my finger to my lips for her to be quieter. Patch was protectively holding our little daughter in his arms. I watched her briefly stir, settle closer to Patch, and go back to her restful sleep. On the dot at midnight of January 1st, Noel had come into the world on time, and with a mind to claim all the hearts that laid eyes on her. Patch and I were already thoroughly hooked on her presence.

"The suspense is killing me! What'd you name her?" She hissed in excitement, giving me a one armed hug from my place on the hospital bed. I smiled over at the two of them. Her pitch black hair matched her father's and was already very thick. She was fast asleep with her little hand curled around his finger.

"Noel Blythe Cipriano," I whispered, still gazing at the amazing sight of my big, strong Patch being wrapped around the tiny finger of our daughter within a moment of her birth. He wasn't focusing on me though, eyes slowly blinking as he marveled at Noel.

"Can I hold her, please?" Vee begged as she sat down in the chair across from Patch, doing her best to appeal to him. He looked at me, I nodded, and he reluctantly stood to set Noel in Vee's arms. Gavin quietly made his entrance as Patch displayed how to properly hold our daughter before setting her within my best friend's arms. The moment Patch's finger left Noel's grip though and she was awake. Her eyes were still the misty blue of a newborn baby as she slowly looked around, processing what had just happened. Vee began to coo softly as she slightly bounced the baby. Within a few moments though, Noel had enough of the extra attention, and let out an uncertain wail. Patch did his best to not be rude as he nonchalantly made his way over to Noel to pick her back up before placing her in my arms. I slipped on the nursing cover, one of many of mom's gifts, and Noel was strongly suckling in content.

"It's nothing personal, just mother nature. It's her instinct when she gets hungry," I tried to reassure Vee as Gavin walked over to rub the back of her neck as she raised an eyebrow. On one of our many chats on the phone, she told me how desperately he at least wanted a child, and she was reluctant to allow such a thing. Vee had never really been interested in being a mom.

"How's our new mommy doing?" My mom whispered as she returned with ice cream from Dairy Queen. I smiled at her as she set all of the stuff down.

"I'm good. Noel is nursing like a champ apparently," It was all the nurses could talk about, either the ridiculously beautiful baby is room 208 or that she was the best nurser to have ever been born in the entire hospital.

"She's perfect," Patch said as he gazed at not only Noel, but deeply at me. I felt a blush color my cheeks and we shared a quick kiss before mom handed Patch my ice cream and started into a catch up talk with Vee and Gavin. I switched Noel around before Patch fed me the first bite of my ice cream. It wasn't long before her suckling grew slower and in less strength and I knew she'd fallen asleep again. I maneuvered her into Patch's arms so I could right my hospital gown and take the nursing cover off, along with being able to eat my own ice cream. He kissed her forehead and I heard the distinctive snap of mom getting one of hundreds of photos.

"She probably has the best documented three days of her life than any baby has ever had before," Vee teased with a smile.

**AN: So there is the first chapter. I'd really appreciate some R&R. First fanfiction story involving Hush Hush so we'll see how it goes. **


	2. Time Flies

Patch's POV

Three Months Later

I felt Nora's foot in the middle of my back a moment too late as she pushed me off the bed to get up with Noel. I caught myself, my face only an inch away from the ground, and all I could do was chuckle at her as I stood up. We'd both learned the difference between Noel's different cries. The one we could both hear over the baby monitor at the moment was what Nora had dubbed, "The Daddy Cry." It usually meant she wanted to be rocked for about fifteen minutes before falling back asleep. Her cry cut short when she heard me open the door and turned to soft whimpering.

"Hey Princess," I whispered as I picked her up. We had chosen a dark blue swinger for her nursery and I reclined back in it, her head resting in the middle of my chest, and I closed my eyes to wait out her need to be awake. From going to the days when I barely slept, I slept most nights now, especially with the uneven sleeping schedule. She'd received my dark eyes as well as my hair; the only feature of Nora's she possessed was the nose. It wasn't long before I felt her fall back into deep breathing and I moved slowly back to her crib. I kissed her forehead before setting her down. She twisted more comfortably on her back and I pulled her blanket up to the middle of her torso.

I just stood there a while, looking at my precious little girl, and I smiled. I never thought to ask for a baby and I couldn't imagine going back to the days without her, just like the day I'd met my Angel, and I couldn't remember the day before seeing her. My life was perfect, down to every single moment. Noel yawned, rolled over on her stomach, and curled her fist around the corner of her blanket. Nora and I had gone back and forth on names two months before she was due to be born. Nora wanted to name her after her mother and I advocated for the fact that she really would be like a late Christmas present and for everything that Christmas represented, Noel would be perfect. I'd managed to compromise for Blythe as her middle name, though I thought Anne would've been better.

"Good night Princess," I whispered before leaving the room and going back to my own bed. Nora moved closer in my arms when I wrapped them around her from behind. It didn't take long for me to fall back asleep much like the rest of the house.

Nora's POV

Noel's 1st Birthday

"Hey cutie pie!" My mom cooed as Patch opened the door for her and Noel walked as fast as her little legs would carry her to see her Gran B, my mom's preferred "grandma name," said in one word. Noel had been walking for three and a half months now, clearly planning on being an over achiever because she already had fifteen obvious words. Unfortunately, "daddy" had been her first word, and Patch always smirked at me when she said it, but I didn't take it personally. My mom walked in with Noel on her hip as Patch followed behind.

"Hi sweetie," She hugged me before sitting with Noel who had been busy pushing buttons on one of her self-narrated books while Patch held her before my mother's arrival.

"Book," Noel pronounced the word thoroughly, clearly showing off. Her hair was about an inch longer than her shoulders, it grew fast, and I didn't plan on cutting it. I'd pinned a portion of her back to make a little bump and I loved how adorable it looked on her.

"Daddy!" She cheered, holding up her arms as Patch passed by, and I avoided looking at him because I could _sense_ the smirk forming on his face. My mom laughed as she willingly passed Noel off to her father. She wrapped her arms loosely around his neck and pushed her forehead against his cheek. He kissed it and leaned against the counter as he held her.

"Mommy!" She said with the same enthusiastic tone and I leaned forward so she could kiss my cheek before grinning proudly at Patch. Daddy's girl didn't even begin to cover it.

"Down," She commanded and he chuckled as he set her down on the shiny wood floor. She grinned challengingly up at him and poked him before running around the island of the kitchen, giggling wildly. It was one of their favorite games to play while I made dinner every night. He grinned as he chased her, my mom smiled before Patch caught Noel, and she squealed with delight before he put her down for her to resume running.

"Okay, dinner is ready," I announced, currently, chicken Alfredo fettuccini was the food that prevailed over all other foods in Noel's world. Patch grabbed her for the final time to swing her into her highchair. She was complacent enough to let him buckle her in before I set her own plate in front of her. We'd determined that she was ambidextrous, so she had two forks on either side of her plate. I placed some fruit salad on the corner of her plate, some green beans with bacon bits, and her sippy cup filled with milk.

"I swear she gets bigger and bigger every time I see her," My mom said that every time she saw Noel. Every Sunday we went to IHOP for brunch, therefore she saw Noel on a weekly basis, and fell in love with her more and more each time.

"Help," She offered her fork to Patch when a small noodle continued to escape. He stabbed it and offered her back the utensil. She smiled and took it back. I loved her bright personality; she was always smiling, and always finding something to do.

"I can't believe she's one year old today. It seemed like only yesterday that she was born," I told my mom as we all finally started to make adult conversation rather than cooing over everything that Noel did.

"I didn't even try to stay up for the New Year, is that bad?" My mom asked with a smile. It was hard to think of her as getting older when our little family would remain ageless.

"We put Noel down for bed and stayed up," I said with a normal, unbiased voice. My mom missed the heated look that Patch gave me from across the table and I felt a hot blush color my cheeks.

"Ni' night," Noel told us, picking up on the word bed as I said it.

"Yes, you go ni' night after bath and story time," I told her and she smiled her almost full set of teeth smile at me. Only a couple of more molars remained in the back and she tended to teeth in the morning, so I planned any errands in the afternoon when she was easier to manage after the medicine had kicked in.

"Daddy an' Mommy ni' night?" Noel asked, ditching the forks all together to eat her green beans by hand.

"Yes, we go ni' night too," I told her before turning my attention back to my mom as she informed me about some changes at work that were driving her up the wall. About thirty minutes later, I brought out Noel's cake, just a normal vanilla with purple and pink frosting with a number one candle on the top. Realizing she was the center of attention while we sang, her eyes lit up as she watched us, and then she giggled after blowing out the candle. I only gave her a small piece, which my mom documented every bite that Noel took, and it wasn't long before we were all done eating. I left Patch to clean up Noel because they made a game out of it, making it fun for her and easy for him.

"Up mommy," She said as she walked over to me after Patch set her on the floor. A small, reserved smile curled his lips up as he gazed at the both us as I set Noel on my hip.

"Presents!" My mom reminded and we made our way to the living room. Noel played with my hair as I walked, but quickly forgot about anything except for the shiny, platinum pink wrapping paper that covered a large box in the living room. Patch made the first rip to show her how to do it and then leaned back as we all laughed and cheered at her attempts. It didn't take her long to realize what little progress she made before she looked up at Patch with her big puppy eyes when she was about to pout.

"Help daddy," She asked and my mom and I quickly awed at her pathetic tone. He chuckled and sat on the ground in front of the couch. Which ever section Noel chose to focus on, he would allow her to tear a couple of inches, and then would make a big rip which she would always ecstatically laugh at before moving to another piece. Finally, the white box was uncovered, and Patch pulled the top off before pulling out each of the gifts inside.

"Mom, you shouldn't have," A baby doll, a stroller meant for the baby doll, a big pieced doctor play set, three new outfits, and a ridiculously adorable pink pea coat with white frills on the edges. She was about to respond when Noel let out a huge yawn.

"Daddy's going to go run your bath Princess," He told her as he kissed her head before proceeding up the stairs.

"She's my grandbaby, of course I'm going to spoil her," Noel was trying her best to figure out exactly what the doctor's kit was, but the exhaustion in her eyes was becoming more and more evident.

"Up mommy," She pulled at my jeans and I picked her up as she curled into me, laying her head on my shoulder, and relaxed all of her muscles.

"I better go before _I_ fall asleep,"

"You know you're welcome to spend the night," I told her. Her house was only thirty minutes away from our own, but I didn't want her driving if she didn't absolutely have to.

"I have work tomorrow," She reminded me before kissing my cheek and hugging me.

"Noel, can you give Gran B a kiss and hug?" If it was possible to set the weight of the world on a one year old's shoulders, apparently I'd done it, because I felt her huff as she pushed up to look at her grandma. She gave a quick squeeze around her neck and an even quicker kiss on the cheek before hiding her face against my neck.

"What a tired baby, I'll talk to you later. I love you dear," My mom said as she walked out the door.

"I love you too," I called as she made her way down the path. Patch had just finished arranging Noel's bath toys when I came in with her. She played with her ducky a little bit, but other than that was clearly showing signs of being burnt out on her day. Noel's towel was a wrap around with a hood that had a stitched on crown and on the back said nothing other than, Princess, in white, curling letters. I changed her into her pajamas. She reached for Patch as we all sat in the love seat next to her small book shelf and she sat comfortably in the crook of his arm as I chose one of her favorite books, Skippy Jon Jones. Her eyes were already half way closed on the second page, but I continued to read to the end, and she was asleep.

I'd watched Patch be a ferocious fighter, murder in his eyes, and revenge in every thought. Yet he handled Noel so gently and endearingly that you would have never guessed that this was the same man. I wrapped my arms around his chest, his arm wrapped around my shoulders, and we both just watched Noel for a moment or two in her crib before making our way to our own bedroom.

"She's one," He practically groaned as he sat down on the edge of the bed, the thought seeming to weigh down on him all of a sudden, and I smiled as I made my way over to him.

"Time flies, doesn't it?"

**AN: Two chapters in one day because I might possibly not be posting one tomorrow because I will be super busy. I hope you enjoyed it and please feel free to review. I know it's slow, but things will pick up the next chapter, I promise. **


	3. Meet the Boyfriend

**AN: Thank you for the encouraging reviews and I look forward to adding on more and more to the story!**

Noel's POV

"First day of middle school!" My mom was practically bouncing up and down in her seat while dad drove with a solemn expression. I grinned before looking out the window, it was raining today, and the shops and sidewalks of Coldwater weren't busy at all. Then there was school and sports. The week before had been volleyball team try outs. I'd made the 6th grade varsity team and elected as team captain. I knew all the girls though, six of them already being my best friends.

"Don't forget, I have volleyball practice till five," I reminded my parents. Mom gave me a ridiculously indulgent look as dad smiled rather evilly and looked at me using the rear view mirror.

"Maybe I'll forget to pick you up and make you walk home,"

"Then I'll spend the night at Gran B's house instead and neither of you will hear about my first day," I called his bluff and my mom laughed. She enjoyed our father and daughter banter as much as we did.

"Alright we're here," Mom announced with barely contained excitement as our Ford truck rolled to a stop in the line for the pick up/drop off zone of the school.

"You've got your cell phone?" Dad checked. I couldn't stop the stupid grin that came over my face as I flashed my brand new iPhone at them with a sparkly black Otter Box. Mom and dad had agreed to get me a cell phone when I started middle school, but mom had not agreed to get me such an expensive one. After back to school shopping, I'd walked in to find the iPhone box with a silver bow on top, and that was as much back to school shopping as dad had to do for me. He'd gotten the unlimited everything plan with Verizon, which was the carrier for my parents' cell phones as well. I'd been given free reign to download music and apps to my heart's content just last night.

"I see Taylor and Sadie, time for me to head out. I'll see you guys later. Love you," I leaned forward into the front to kiss my dad's cheek and then my mom's. She smiled at me again before they both said "I love you too," in complete sync.

"Have a good day, Princess," My dad added when I opened the door and I gave him one last smile before throwing my bag over my shoulder, patting my pocket for my phone, and leaving my parents behind.

"Noel! Oh my gosh, I love your outfit . . . and your hair! Why couldn't I look as good as you this morning?" Taylor playfully pouted as we all headed in to our new school. We were directed to the gym by the teachers before receiving our sixth grade orientation station that was organized by first letter of your last name.

"What if the eighth graders eat me?" Sadie gasped as we were forced to separate.

"I'm Tanner and this is Devin, we are your orientation leaders!" Both boys didn't fail to check me out and I offered a smile before trying to find some other place to look. I was tall and skinny, wearing a size zeros in jeans. Mom reminded me that I looked a lot older than my age most days and I didn't even wear make up.

"Noel," My heart hit overdrive and I bit my lip to hide my explosive smile when I turned to see none other than Matthew Anderson standing behind me with a huge smile that caused my own to blossom.

"Hey Matt," I moved closer to stand in front of him so we could speak easily in the loud gym. When did he get taller than me? We'd been the same size in elementary school before we left for the summer. We'd been kid sweethearts, being as much as a "boyfriend and girlfriend" got at that age. His silky blond hair was still tousled and kind of chose to do its own thing, slightly curling at the edges and those light blue eyes were still the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen. Now he stood a couple of inches taller, only a couple, but it made things feel different.

"It feels like a long time since I've seen you," He said and I blushed a little though he'd barely said anything.

"A summer used to be a long time. So what are your classes?" I'd missed seeing him on registration day, telling my parents I wanted a few more minutes to talk to my friends before we left, but in truth, all I wanted to do was catch a glimpse of Matthew.

"Let me see your schedule," We held them side by side and found every class perfectly aligned and we both laughed.

"Looks like your stuck with me," I teased and the look in his eyes told me maybe that wasn't such a bad thing.

"Alright newbies, let's head to the sixth grade hallway, and find your classes!" Tanner said to our group which was all of fifteen kids. The halls were already crowded with the other six graders and I felt Matt's finger lightly interlink with mine as we seemed to move at a crawl. He must've felt my startled gaze because he smiled back at me as we were jostled.

"Wouldn't want to lose you,"

"I think I can handle a crowd," I had to admit to the fact that my heart was squeezing with every beat at the contact though. He didn't respond, only smirked a little at me, and we finally became a group again as Tanner and Devin waved us into a classroom that had a bunch of math posters.

"You can let go now," Matt whispered as we all moved around the class to find where things were.

"Maybe I don't want to," I said over my shoulder as I moved along with him. Though I managed to hide my complete and utter delight, Matt held on to my hand tighter, and I could feel how perfectly our hands fit together. Tanner and Devin herded us through every major subject room before showing us the library, cafeteria, and the rooms for extracurricular classes such as art or choir.

"So someone got a cell phone?" Matt flicked the case through the pocket of my jeans.

"Did you?" I asked back, before I realized what he'd done, he snagged my phone, pulled out his phone, and proceeded to exchange our numbers without my permission.

"I'm kind of sad I'm not your first contact," I snatched my phone back, but not before shooting him a dirty look after dropping his hand.

"Maybe you won't even be a contact," I muttered, proceeding to ignore him, but I wouldn't dare delete his number. He laughed, but stopped when I moved my hand from his when he tried to grab it again.

"Oh come on Noel, I was just playing around," I put a couple of feet between us. I wasn't even mad anymore, but it was fun to watch him work at my attention rather than receiving it on a silver platter.

"You should've asked," I pretended to listen to Tanner's boring story of learning how to sew in Home ED.

"Will you stop being mad at me if I ask you to come to my first football game this Saturday?" I perked up and turned back toward him, but still chose to act reserved.

"Why me?"

"Why not you?" He countered, hope filling his eyes as he offered his hand, and then a smile broke out over his face again when I put my hand in his.

"I'll only come if you're going to win," I teased as Devin took his turn to speak for a while. Matt's smile turned cocky as he grinned and I angled better to listen to Devin's more interesting story of the time a kid passed out because he pricked his finger with the needle on accident and saw the small drop of blood. We didn't get to speak much after that because the rest of the day was filled with lunch and a terribly boring speech in the gym from the principal. Such things always seemed so much more interesting in elementary school.

"I've got to ask you something,"

"What is it?"

"I know we were in elementary school, but that doesn't really count, so I wanted to ask . . . Do you want to be my girlfriend?" I blushed as I smiled at the ground because I'd been hoping it'd all lead to this.

"Yes," I told him once I was able to look up and the answering smile in his eyes only reaffirmed my decision.

"I'll text you after I get done with football practice," Matt told me as we stood near the exit doors.

"Sounds good," I replied with a laid back tone while the inside of me was completely thrilled with the idea. Matt spotted his parent's car through the glass window of the door and quickly pecked me on the cheek before booking it outside. Taylor and Sadie squealed like little girls as we made our way toward the locker room to change for practice.

"He likes you and you like him. You'll be like a power couple. You two are the most popular people in our grade obviously," Taylor gushed as we put on spandex and t-shirts.

"I guess we _are _the power couple," I said as casually as possible. It took a moment for the rest of my best friends to put two and two together before we were all jumping up and down and laughing and being girls.

"You don't look too traumatized after your first day of school," Dad noted as I got into the truck. My phone was already being flooded with text messages from my friends and most importantly, the first message from Matt just popped up, but I wasn't about to touch that subject with my dad until mom was around.

"I think I'm traumatized enough to need some comfort food . . . like pizza?" I hinted and he kind of chuckled at me as he was already making the turn for my favorite pizza joint.

"You're mom already called and told me the same thing. I picked up this flyer at the sports store when we got the new water bottles. I forgot to show it to you," He tapped on the middle console and I opened it to retrieve the piece of paper.

"Club volleyball in Portland? You think I'm good enough for a competitive team?" I read through the flyer that was advertising try outs days in November when most school volleyball seasons would be finished. Dad gave me a "duh" look as he parked the truck and I hopped out with him to get our order. This day could not possibly get any better I decided. Dad and I didn't talk on the way home as I texted and he drove, but it was a peaceful silence that I treasured, and I was happy it never made things feel awkward between us.

"She's home!" My mom called and I ran in to tell her about the club volleyball and dad set the pizza down. Over dinner, I told them all about my day, leaving out most of the parts about Matt, except when I slipped up about asking to go to his football game this Saturday at ten a.m. Mom's gaze shot to dad's and I had a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach.

"Matthew Anderson? The boy you went to elementary school with?" Mom asked with an unbiased tone and I nodded as dad very intently studied the table cloth.

"Is he your boyfriend?" Dad was direct, but he got the job done.

"Yes," I squeaked like one of the cartoons, the words barely leaving my lips as I braced for the worst.

"You're excused Noel," Mom said as she and dad went into a stare off across the table. I didn't question either of them as I grabbed my stuff and ran up the stairs to my room. I flopped down on my bed and whipped out my phone. If I didn't worry too much, then the worst wouldn't happen, that was sound logic in my head.

_Did you two kiss? -Andrea_

_He kissed me on the cheek. -Reply_

_Apparently we were making out at lunch, wish that rumor were true ;) –Matt_

_I heard we already broke up. I'm glad that rumor isn't true. –Reply_

_First couple of the grade! I think you should get an award! –Taylor_

_Because that'd be such a great honor. –Reply_

I heard a knock on the door, "Come in!" Dad's head poked in as did the rest of him, carrying my favorite Rocky Road ice cream, and he came to sit at the foot of my bed as I immediately dug into my treat.

"I'm not mad, because you seemed so concerned," He said after a while.

"I figured if I had to, I'd melt your anger with a smile," I shrugged and he chuckled because he knew as well as I did how susceptible he could be to my adorable charm.

"There are some ground rules that mom and I agreed on and if you follow them, I guess I can tolerate you . . . _dating_," I could see the internal shutter at the word, "One, he needs to come to dinner on Friday night before any of this gets too serious. Two, if you're going somewhere without parent supervision, you need to be with a group of friends, at least four others. Three, if it's just going to be you two, you need to be here. These rules are non-negotiable until you're in high school, is that clear?" I thought through each rule thoroughly and decided they were more than fair.

"It's clear daddy, thank you," I stood up when he did and gave him a tight hug.

"Go thank your mom too. I thought it'd be a better idea to just stick you in a bubble," I laughed as I pulled away and walked toward my door.

"I love you daddy,"

"I love you too Princess,"

**AN: This chapter was more or less in honor of Father's Day. I promise the next chapter is where the action will begin. R&R would be much appreciated. **


	4. An Evening Walk

**AN: So we finally get some action. Yay, thanks for the reviews!**

Noel's POV

"Do you have to go to England for two weeks? I'm going to miss you too much, how about . . . a day? Even better, you can go for a few hours and then come back," Matt said softly as we cuddled on the couch, blatantly ignoring the movie, and instead focused on talking and kissing. I laughed at him before we were caught up in another kiss.

"Consider this your pass to play all the football and workout as much as you want without a girlfriend to hog all the rest of your time," I teased, combing my fingers through the fine hair at the back of his neck. It was the end of the summer between eighth grade and freshmen year. Matt and I had stuck together over the three years of middle school to everyone else's surprise who usually had a new girlfriend/boyfriend every couple of months or so, if that. He'd even earned my dad's respect and my mom was probably already thinking of him as her future son in-law.

"But you're my running buddy in the morning," He mumbled against my cheek before kissing the tip of my nose as we lay face to face. I smiled because I would miss him just as much as he missed me. He was the kind of boyfriend I knew a lot of girls couldn't wait to get their hands on if I ever let go, but I wouldn't. My Gran B was polite to Matt, but I knew she was just waiting for the day when our young love would go up in flames. She didn't understand how we could be so hooked on one another at this age.

"We'll Facetime when the time is decent and you won't even have time to miss me," I closed my eyes as I pressed my face against his and our lips met. They were gentle, comforting, loving in a way that melted me to his love all over again. When they began to become a little rougher and a make out session would surely ensue, the footsteps coming down the stairs alerted us to my mom.

"Being good?" She asked.

"Yes mom," "Yes Mrs. Cipriano,"

"Noel, are you completely packed?"

"Yes," We listened to her footsteps go back upstairs before Matt chuckled, his warm breath blowing across my face as he did so.

"One day it won't be your mom, it'll be your dad, and he'll kill me,"

"If I beg enough, I think he'll be kind enough to make it fast and painless," His blue eyes sparkled with his laughter.

"You're a three time national championships winner in volleyball, you've got to be strong enough to fight him by now, not just beg," I laughed with him this time.

"Noel, daddy's truck just pulled up!" Mom called from the top of the stairs and Matt and I scrambled to disentangle and be upstairs with relatively normal expressions on our faces. By the time dad walked through the door, we were hard at work on chopping ingredients for the salad mom wanted made.

"Hey Princess . . . Hi Matt," My dad's tone changed to disgruntled though Matt was here often enough to just become another facet in our family unit. Mom had gone upstairs and dad headed up as well to change from his dressier pair of work pants. He worked for a security company, setting up appraisals for the work it would take to install. Most of it could be done at home, on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, he had to go into work to turn in his appraisals and pick up a new pile by the end of the work hours for the day.

"Still hates me," Matt muttered and I kissed his cheek. Before I could move away, he wrapped his arm around my waist, reeling me in for a much more satisfying kiss. Two honks from outside meant Matt's dad was here to pick him up. I walked him to the door and after closing it; we stood on the front porch and hugged for what felt like a long time before he kissed me for even longer until the two honks seemed to take on impatience.

"I love you beautiful," He whispered in my ear like it was a secret just between us.

"I love you too handsome," It was our goodbye and we kissed one last time before he walked away. Mom and dad hadn't come back downstairs and I tried not to think too hard about what was taking them so long as I set dinner up on the table and waited. It had been five minutes and they still hadn't come down, so I filled my own plate and went down stairs to watch the end of the movie whose title had already been forgotten.

"Noel, time to go!" Dad called and I found I'd lost some of my enthusiasm when it came to the trip. It was just me and mom going to see Aunt Vee, Uncle Gavin, and their terribly mannered son, Tyler. My bags were already in the truck along with mom's and I chose to lounge in the back seat as we drove. Our flight departure was midnight unfortunately. Mom and dad were staring way too suggestively at each other and I did my best to ignore them by scrolling through pictures of Matt and I. My favorite was my screen saver, Matt was in his football uniform and I was in my volleyball and we were kissing while it rained. I missed him already, so I chose to play Angry Birds and plug into my music to try to drown out my sadness.

Once we reached the airport and made it through all the baggage checks and full body scans, we waited outside our terminal. Right on time, one of the flight attendants started directing parents and children to take their seats first. I looked away while mom and dad kissed and whispered good byes. Dad pulled me into a tight hug when I hadn't turned back around and I pressed my face into his trademark leather jacket he'd had since long before I was born. It was my first trip without him and that bothered me too.

"Listen to your mom, stay out of trouble, and be a good guest. I love you Princess," He kissed my forehead before I kissed his cheek, giving him one final squeeze.

"I love you daddy," I whispered, my voice was tiny, and I felt like I was back at my first day of kindergarten as I clung to his hand before making the choice to go inside while leaving him and mom outside. He kissed me on the forehead one more time, mom on the lips, and we turned to board the plane without him.

"It'll be a great girls' trip," My mom reassured me as I looked out at the dark night from my window seat.

"I know it will," I said back before doing my best to fall asleep.

******One Long Flight Later and a Happy Reunion Between Nora and Vee******

Nora's POV

"It's such a nice night for a walk," I told Noel as we strolled hand in hand down Gavin and Vee's street. I knew my daughter was still feeling a little homesick as she looked around with distant eyes. She'd Facetime'd with Matt after dinner and had a long talk with Patch when I called him. We'd traveled for volleyball before, but she'd never gone without the two leading men in her life for a long time at the same time. Traveling for her tournaments was a family thing and she always had the option to text or call Matt because the minutes weren't international. We rounded the corner onto another neighborhood street, though these houses actually had a few feet separating each individual building unlike Vee's street where they all ran together in one line.

"I miss daddy, one look from him and Tyler leaves me alone. Now he's trying to flirt with me and it's unacceptable in _all_ cultures to knee a boy in the balls when he doesn't listen to you politely ask him to stop as you continue to remind him that you have a boyfriend that could very easily _kick his ass_,"

"Language!" I snapped at Noel, though I knew she was just letting out frustration. Her and Patch usually talked that way around the other, so it wasn't a complete surprise.

"Oh, sorry, kick his arse," I shot her a look and she half smiled in apology. Before I could say something else, two sets of hands grabbed me and threw me into the darkness of the alley between two houses that looked abandoned. Fallen angels, I didn't know how and I didn't know why, just that somehow they were here, and had thrown Noel beside me before we both stumbled to our feet. In the darkness, I could make out shiny scars from the faint moonlight, and they seemed to cover every inch of skin. Noel stood slightly behind me to my right.

"The Black Hand's daughter and another descendant at that, I heard you're still the most powerful Nephil on the planet, and here you have a half Nephil and half fallen angel, now how did you work that out?" The biggest and tallest of them said with a deep, disgusted voice as they cornered us farther into the alleyway. I looked at them and imagined what I'd done to Dante that day, and set off thousands of bombs in each of their heads. Yet they seemed far from effected as they all chuckled.

"Nice try, nice try, but not good enough," Noel grasped my hand and I caught a glance of her before her hard gaze turned on the biggest one. She looked so much like Patch in this very moment, eyes aflame with rage held barely in check, and I couldn't seem to get my muscles to work to pull her back behind me as she moved forward.

"You know, I don't like having your voice in my head, but I figure if you can do it to me, then I can do it to you, right?" Her voice was steely and held malice before suddenly the leader gasped and went to his knees, cradling his head between his hands as he strangled on a scream. Noel reached forward and grabbed the gun that poked out of the holster on his back that had been previously covered by his jacket. The three fallen angels rushed her but they too went to the ground, groaning and gasping for air. In each one's back, Noel shot two bullets where their wing scars would've started, and then they were all motionless.

"Noel," I didn't see the transformation, didn't sense the difference, until my daughter had just saved us both. She carefully set the gun on the ground and turned to look at me and I watched tears roll down her cheeks. I took a couple of steps toward her, but she immediately countered me with a couple of steps back.

"What am I mom? Don't give me some crap about being your daughter or try to tone it down. I deserve some answers," Her voice broke part way through, but she pushed on to finish her sentence.

"Can we get out of here first?" I asked gently, moving towards her, but she continued her retreat.

"I saw his mind, his memories, and his weaknesses. They'll be out for eight hours at least, start talking," I sighed as I leaned my back against the wall and she did the same on the opposite wall, eyes trained and watching me as if I'd attack her too.

"A Nephil is a someone who can be possessed at a certain period by fallen angels, these kind of men, and more importantly, your father. When I was eighteen, with your dad's help, we managed to dispose of all the fallen angels, or so we'd thought, to free Nephils from their oath of fealty to be possessed. All we knew for sure about you being born was that you'd live forever, that at some point you'd stop aging, and that you weren't showing any outward signs of being able to mentally or physically do anything Nephils or fallen angels could do," It was more information than I'd ever wanted her to bear. Patch and I had agreed to tell her when she turned eighteen and could better process the information, now my fourteen year old looked like she'd seen a ghost.

"So I'm not human," She whispered, closing her eyes, and tipping her head back.

"No," I waited for some outward sign of emotion or for some sort of reaction, but she seemed to be holding herself dangerously in check.

"He was in my head, the leader, telling me he was going to find a way to make you swear fealty, that I'd be next if that were possible. He was trying to scare me. I could feel the line from his mind to mine like a little string was connecting them. He tried to poke around in my head and I felt like walls were suddenly formed, protecting me, and I wasn't even doing it. Then I knew that connection was open and went into his mind and saw all the basic information he knew about himself, a few worthless memories of drinking and gambling. I don't know how he escaped what you and dad did, I didn't see that, but I wanted him out of my head, so I thought about setting his world on fire, and it just happened. His pain didn't even frighten me though and when those others were coming for me, I knew I'd be okay. I knew I could protect me and you," She had opened her eyes to look at me by the end. They were filled with an eternal sadness though, as if she'd lost her humanity.

"I tried to do what you did, but I couldn't. It was like my mental attack just bounced back, as if they had some shield to deflect it. They weren't ordinary fallen angels," I couldn't believe I was even talking to my little girl about this, explaining how I could mentally ruin someone as if I was discussing the weather, and I heard her take a deep breath.

"Do you think you could cut our trip short?" She asked as we both simultaneously pushed off the wall. To my surprise, she hooked her arm with mine, and I was hoping everything would be okay with her, even if it didn't seem like it right now.

"I'll call your daddy, let him know what happened, and see if we can't catch a flight back to Maine within the week. I don't want to put Vee or her family in danger by being here any longer than we have to. I'll make up something, I don't know what, but I will,"

"I can at least act like I have food poisoning so we can stay at Aunt Vee's instead of calling more attention to ourselves by touring London, especially if there are more fallen angels around," Noel explained and I nodded with permission. We finally made it back on to Vee's street.

"At least you can see Matt sooner," I offered her a smile, but watched her face fall and eyes become resigned.

"I don't think we'll work out, not anymore anyway," She whispered, hiding her pain by avoiding my eyes as we made our way up the steps to the front door.

**AN: Please, please, please review!**


	5. Healing

Patch's POV

I hugged Nora and went to hug Noel, but she stood there like a statue. I pulled away and her eyes were completely emotionless as she stared off.

_She's been like this since we got back to Vee's house. She ate a chip before we left on the plane and she hasn't slept whatsoever. Patch, I'm so worried about her. _Nora thought to me as we began to walk toward the baggage claim. Noel walked behind us in complete silence. I looked over my shoulder at her and offered my free hand because Nora was tucked under my other arm, but she just shook her head and put another foot of space between us.

_We'll figure something out, Angel._

_I know you two are talking about me, so you might as well do it out loud. _I looked back at Noel and she was staring rather blatantly at me, as if she really didn't give any thought to mind speaking.

"We can get pizza on the way home," Nora said with forced enthusiasm as she watched our daughter when we came to a stop next to the baggage claim that hadn't started yet. Noel shrugged and looked around without making eye contact.

"Noel, you may not be human, but you're still you. You're still an amazing volleyball player, a student with a 4.0 GPA, the kind of friend a friend would like to have, a daughter that parents pray they'll have and never get, and so much more Princess. Can't you still see that?" I asked and she began to stare down at her hands that twisted against one another, "I hate to admit it, but Matt loves you sweetie. I doubt he wants you to close off from the world and from him."

"Yeah, you listed a bunch of normal things that I was. Did mom tell you how she's one of the most powerful Nephils in the world and yet she couldn't mind trick or whatever you call in on those fallen angels. But I could, I could destroy them mentally, and you want to tell me that I'm still me. That the same person who shot four men in the back is still the same person who walked on to that plane to England, because I don't see it, not anymore," Her lip quivered, like she was about to cry, and I decided to ease back to give her some breathing room. Nora was starting to get upset too and I hugged her against my side, much like I wanted to do to Noel, but I knew better. Noel grabbed her own bags as I grabbed Nora's and he headed out to the truck. From her carry on bag, I watched her pull out her cell phone, turn it off, and lightly toss it in the seat farthest from her without even glancing at the screen to see who had called and texted. We drove home in silence and Noel went straight to her room.

"I don't know what to do with her," Nora sighed, choking on a sob, and I walked over to wrap my arms around her. I didn't know either, couldn't understand what would convince her that she wasn't the abomination that she thought she was. Matt was human, but that shouldn't have deterred her so easily, not the daughter I used to know. We got into bed and Nora cried some more until she finally went to sleep and I lay there wondering what I could do. Noel had convinced herself that she wasn't normal, and we just needed to show her that being half Nephil and half fallen angel didn't give her the right to put her life on hold. I understood she was upset with the news, but I'd watched her get floor burns, bruises, and cuts on the volleyball court, and she shrugged off the pain like it was no big deal. She'd come home with a completely scraped up arm once when she'd fallen when playing outside and hadn't shed a tear. That Noel was still in there somewhere, I just had to find her. I remembered that she'd left her phone in the truck and an idea came to mind.

Noel's POV

I was lying in the hammock on the back porch. The doorbell had ringed, but my dad had answered it, and I didn't feel like getting up. I wanted Matt, but I didn't want him at the same time, or at least, I didn't want him to want me. What was I supposed to say? Sorry, let's flush three years of dating down the drain because I'm half of two things that never existed before a few days ago. I hope you have a nice life without me. I hadn't texted or called him, hadn't summoned up the courage to end it with the one person who meant everything to me. My eyes were closed when I heard the back door opened and I hoped it was Gran B because I could at least get her distracted enough to leave me alone.

"Noel?" My eyes shot open to find Matt standing just a little passed the doorway, a bouquet of carnations in his arms, my favorite flowers, and the guilt practically ate me alive in that very moment.

"Hi," My voice didn't sound quite right as I got out of the hammock to stand in front of Matt. He looked like Matt with his blond hair and big muscles, yet unfamiliar to me, was the pronounced concern in his blue eyes as he gazed at me. He was worried already and we hadn't said two words to one another. He reached forward to touch my cheek, a silent question hanging between us, but I instead took the carnations and went in the kitchen where we kept the vases.

"They're beautiful, thank you," I said, forcing a small smile, and I felt faker than Barbie. After putting them in water, I placed them in the center of the counter, and we stood there awkwardly as Matt continued to watch me and I continued to die a little on the inside.

"Do you want to go for a walk?" He asked, quirking one of his half smiles, something that normally should've melted off my reservations, but I held tight to my walls.

"Yeah," I stuck my hands in my back pockets to avoid him reaching for one and kept enough space in between us so he couldn't wrap his arm around my shoulders. Seventy percent of our 10 acres was covered by trees, so it didn't take long for the house to disappear from view, or for me and Matt to be very alone. We came to a small clearing where we'd played, laughed, and kissed more times I could count. So many times we'd laid there in the warm sunlight in silence or whispered softly of things that connected us in a million ways. Matt stopped in the clearing and turned to me. I gulped, trying to figure out how I was going to break up with him, and how painful that consequence would be afterwards.

_Why are you blocking me out Noel? _I froze my eyes going wide as Matt gazed at me evenly after mind speaking. I just imagined it, I'd let my own need get the best of me, yes, that was it. _Something happened and I don't know what, but it's hurting you, and I want to help. _Nope, definitely didn't imagine that, and all I could do was stare dumbfounded at Matt before trying on my own.

_How are you talking to me? You're not Nephil or fallen angel and I would know. _

_You're right, I'm not either of those things, I'm your guardian angel. _All I could do was stare like a stupid child. Matt had grown up with me, he'd aged with me, and yet he was dropping his own bombshell on me. _I didn't know up until I turned thirteen. The archangels came to me and explained my duty to protect you, that you were more powerful than either fallen angels or Nephils. They said I could tell you, but wait for the time to be right, and by fact that you're acting like you're about to break up with me, I think this would be a good time to lay my cards on the table, but I think you need to lay down your own hand as well. I'm still your Matt, baby, and that's never going to change. _

_In England, my mom and I got cornered by four fallen angels that aren't even supposed to exist anymore. She couldn't hurt them, but I could . . . and I did. _Matt's eyes went wide and I couldn't react fast enough as he strode toward me and cradled my face between his hands.

"Are you okay? Did they hurt you?" Everything crumbled then and I felt tears stream down my face as Matt's arms folded around me as I cried into his sweatshirt, and then managed to cry some more. I could hear him whispering in my ear promises, how much he loved me, how everything would be okay, and that he was here, with me. By the end, when my sobs had turned into petty sniffles, he pulled away enough to wipe the last few tear drops from my cheeks, and then pulled me close again as I clung to him. We stood there for minutes on end, just taking the other in, until finally I felt the tsunami that had hit me recede back into my emotions, and I could admit to myself that I was okay.

"So you knew?" I asked, my voice slightly muffled against the fabric of his hood. One arm was wrapped around me like a boa constrictor while one hand rubbed up and down my back.

"I did. I could tell your parents hadn't told you, so I decided I'd wait until they did before I told you what I was. I didn't think you'd find out that way though. Good God, what would I have done if something happened to you, Noel, I couldn't live with myself," The fear in his voice was tangible as he pushed his face in my hair.

"So you're not normal, like me?"

"What about you was normal before? This coming from the girl who goes deer hunting with me every year and has no problem gutting it, but screams bloody murder when she sees a little worm," He chuckled as he pushed our foreheads together and I felt the internal knot within me loosen, "You know I still love you more than anything, don't you?"

"Of course I do, just like I love you because you're my everything," I whispered back, kissing his cheek, and he grinned. I missed that smile so much.

"That's my girl," He said right before he kissed me softly, like a kiss that hadn't even happened, before making it more forceful and real. I kissed him back with as much passion as he offered, feeling myself become whole again, and watching those dangerous thoughts drown as Matt's love protected me from it all.

"Why'd you end up coming today?" I whispered when we finally parted.

"Your dad called me from your cell phone, told me the trip got cut short, and I was invited over," I smiled at my dad's thoughtfulness, though if Matt would've told me that before this all went down, I might've considered killing my dad for forcing me through this.

"Does he know what you are?"

"No, the archangels made it so my energy or whatever is like a human's. I don't think we should tell them quite yet, considering that's just going to reinforce the fact as to why I'm such a clingy boyfriend," He teased with a smile.

"So when I stop aging?"

"I'll stop aging with you. Sorry babe, you'll be stuck with me for kind of as long as forever," He teased against my temple, kissing all over my face, and I held at him tighter.

"Damn, I thought I'd got rid of you by the time college came around," I teased back and he chuckled again before pulling away, wrapping an arm around my shoulders, and we headed back toward the house. We didn't have to talk, just enjoy the other, and I couldn't help but smile like I'd just won the lottery. Everything was quiet when we walked back in the house and I found a note from my mom that she and dad had gone out for dinner and that Matt was allowed to stay over for the night, that she'd "cleared" it with his parents. I showed him the note while I hunted through the refrigerator to find a whole pizza that was from a couple of days ago, before I'd wanted to start eating again. We didn't bother heating it up as we went downstairs to the family room to turn on a movie. We each had half of the pizza and Matt told me how sexy it was that I could eat that much. Exhausted from my emotional turmoil over the last few days, the last thing I remembered was curling up against Matt, and closing my eyes.

Nora's POV

"Do you smell bacon?" I whispered to Patch as I pushed on to my elbow with sleepy eyes. Patch mumbled something and pulled me back against him and I smiled. We'd left our door cracked open last night and Noel's laugh carried up to me and that even had Patch sitting up in surprise.

"I think it's about time we see how our daughter is," He murmured. I changed into some more decent clothes and threw my hair back in a ponytail as Patch put on some shorts and a t-shirt before we headed down stairs. When we entered the kitchen, Noel had a huge smile on her face, and playfully cheered as Matt flipped two pancakes at once. There was already a sizeable pile on the serving plate, along with that there was freshly cut up fruit, bacon, milk, orange juice, and the coffeepot had just finished making a fresh batch.

"You're finally up sleepyheads!" Noel teased with the same smile as she placed our plates in front of us as we sat down in the bar stools. She'd watched us make our own coffee enough to know what we liked and set steaming cups in front of us along with the assorted arrangement of fruits, syrup, and whipped cream.

"Did you go for a run this morning?" Patch asked.

"Yep," Noel popped the P and Matt kissed her cheek as she passed him to get the newest pancakes off the pan before he poured the last of the mix. He peeked over his shoulder at Patch considering how careful they normally were about their PDA around us. Patch only nodded his head in permission.

_I'm glad you're doing better Princess. _Patch said it so both of us could hear and I smiled.

_Thank you for calling Matt when I couldn't daddy. _She leaned and kissed Patch on the cheek before getting her own plate ready for her breakfast. With both kids distracted, Patch and I kissed, and I was glad to see my little girl as happy as before, maybe even a little bit lighter.

**AN: So I really like this chapter and please review!**


	6. A Dangerous Night

Matt's POV

The crowd erupted in another roar as Noel went for the winning hit that would take our team to state again for the second year in the row and I had no doubt Noel planned on putting a new state champion's patch on her letterman. Two of the people in the back row dove for it, but reacted a moment to late as the ball hit the floor, and the game was won. Parents, students, and teachers cheered with all our might at the regionals win. Coldwater High School's volleyball team would be the top seed once again. Noel's parents couldn't make it tonight because they had gone on vacation to France, though Noel said they felt guilty for unintentionally missing her regionals games. I jogged off the stands and after three volleyball rhymes in a row about victory, Noel noticed me, and threw herself into my hug as I light spun her around. She giggled and kissed my cheek before I put her down still keeping my arms around her and her arms around my neck.

"I am so proud of you baby girl," I said as we kept our foreheads pressed together and she grinned with one of her sunshine smiles that I loved the most. She looked at her most gorgeous when she had that smile on her face.

"We should go out for—" Noel didn't finish as all the lights went out in the gym. A gunshot rang out and I felt the force of it miss my shoulder by only a couple of inches. The bullet ended up lodged in the floor and I could see the eerie blue glow of devil craft emanating from it. Noel noticed it to and I felt her push closer to me. From what had been cheering just a few moments ago had turned to fearful screaming. I could hear people pushing against the exit doors that seemed to be jammed by something on the other side. It was complete darkness and all I could feel was Noel's arms around me.

_The doors that lead into the school instead of out of it might not be blocked. We need to try through there. _I told her and she moved her hand down my arm until her fingers clasped with mine and I pulled her toward the direction of the doors. The advantages of being a football player were that you trained everyday to push through people and I did it now. Noel kept her other hand hooked around the waistband of my shorts as I made our way through the crowd until we found the cove that should have the doors. The door opened and I pulled her through. We sprinted toward the nearest exit doors and found them to be blocked as well. I rammed my shoulder into it, but the door barely gave the tiniest budge before something reaffirmed its weight on the other side.

"Matt, I heard footsteps, down that hall; I swear to God I heard footsteps!" Noel snapped and I pulled her behind me as I backed away from the exit doors. Apparently the entire school didn't have power because everything was darkness out here too. I could hear the footsteps in the art hallway too. We backed up, doing our best to remain quiet, and I could tell we were making our way toward the main lobby. It was impossible to know if whoever it was had turned the corner until another shot rang out and Noel yanked me down with her where it would've lodged in her head. I yanked her into a run and we could hear the footsteps pick up pace as whoever it was followed. In the cinderblock that we passed, I could see once again a blue glowing bullet.

_We need to split up. They're after me, not you. I'll keep running while you test exits. Tell me when you find one. _Noel tried to pull her hand from mine, but I just held on to it that much tighter.

_No, I'm not leaving you alone with whomever the hell that it behind us, not now, not ever. _I could feel Noel's resistance, but then she squeezed my hand in agreement. No matter what, I had to keep Noel safe, none of it mattered if I didn't keep her alive, and with a little less priority, myself. She'd once told me she didn't want to go anywhere I wouldn't be and that choice went both ways when it came to us.

_Remember that football move I showed you where you go two steps to the right and then go straight across the other way. That's what we're going to do now. _Instinctually, I knew two halls split off at the same time, so I took two steps toward the right one, and then we sprinted down the left one. I heard a curse word from our pursuer as he lost valuable time. We took the stairs at full speed using the walls to let us know when they twisted to continue going upward and we made it to the second level. Noel's hand found mine again as we chose to go right this time, still using the wall for guidance until I found the room I was looking for and we went inside. Luckily, the doors were kept unlocked so the janitors could get it. I locked it behind us and let go of Noel's hand and ran to the windows. Below us, there were huge bushes that had been planted when the school opened. They should be able to cushion our fall enough to avoid major injury. I shoved the rolling book shelves out of the way as I cranked one of the windows as fast as I could. I felt Noel's hand rest on top of my free one before the door gave a rattling shake. I finally cranked the window open enough for us to get through, but it was too late as the door burst open, and the gun was pointed directly at Noel.

"Little speed demon, aren't you?" It was the feeling of a fallen angel that shouldn't exist that went down my spine. I took a step toward Noel to put myself between her and the bullet, but I heard the dangerous click of the gun that told me a bullet had been loaded in the chamber, and I stopped where I was. The fallen angel was poking against my mind, trying to find an opening, and I closed everything off, and that meant closing off from Noel too. From the faint moonlight coming in through the window, I could see her eyes fixed on the fallen angel, and her eyebrows pull together in concentration. The hand that was still over mine, I gripped tightly, and she squeezed. The last thing I ever expected was to get reassurance from her and not be the one giving it.

"I can feel you trying to get in my mind, Noel, daughter of Patch and Nora, and I'll tell you right now, it won't—" He didn't finish as he groaned in agony, stumbling into the nearest desk. He shot his arms up and over his head, tilted the gun back, and shot two times in his wing scars before collapsing to the ground.

"Two more are in the school and they're probably coming this way, so I suggest we go out the window," I stared at her for a moment before realizing she must've picked through his mind for answers. I helped her slip out of the window and she landed on the bushed a lot more gracefully than I did when I went out the window. We were careful as we walked around the school to get to my Dodge Ram and found the police had gotten everyone out of the gym. Acting as if nothing had happened to us, we got to my truck, and both heaved an enormous sigh when we got in. I didn't bother turning on the truck as I leaned against the window and pulled her into my arms, she was straddling my lap, and I could feel every breath she took until they fell in sync with mine.

"They knew where I went to high school and somehow knew my parents were out of town. His name was Tristan, the other two that we didn't see were Sam and Dabria. He wanted me dead, something about that I was too powerful, and there were blurry images in his mind of where he'd been, but it was like he even didn't want to remember.

"How'd you get him to shoot himself?"

"I didn't necessarily have to invade his mind; I just hooked on to his energy, and controlled him like a puppet. Dad showed me how. It was a trick he couldn't do, but he knew the mechanics behind it," She kept her head under my chin, one of her hands on my shoulder rubbed back and forth while the other had a grip of my t shirt in her fist.

"Do you think they knew where you live? I whispered next to her ear.

"It didn't seem like he did. They were betting heavily on killing me here. I know where all the guns are at in my house and the security system is state of the art. Dad had them set up all the electrical work for it inside in the basement, so that no one could cut the power from outside. It's safer than anywhere else at the moment," She kissed my jaw before easing upward so I could see her better. I cradled her face in my hands and saw the fear fade from her eyes as she pushed her face into my touch, lips grazing over the inside of my wrist, and my tense muscles finally relaxed. Noel was safe, we'd made it through, and we were all right.

"We'll go to your house tonight. I already told my parents that I was spending the night at Josh's who is actually having Taylor spend the night, if you know what I mean, so my alibi checks out. You should call yours," Lucky for her, Noel had put all of her stuff in the truck before the game, nothing would need to be retrieved from the police, except for a lonely water bottle that she hated anyway. I turned out of the parking space, Noel sitting in the middle, and watched her call her dad's cell phone.

"No answer," She did the same with her mom's cell phone and shook her head, "They're probably busy going to a five star restaurant or climbing the stairs of the Eifel Tower or other things that I try really hard not to think about. They'll call when they see they missed me."

"They'll kill you if they find out I spent the night," It wouldn't be the first time, but they'd always been in the house when it happened. Noel smirked at me before laying her head down on my shoulder as I set my free hand on her lower knee as I took my place in the long line of cars that was being inspected by police officers before being allowed to leave.

"You did kind of run around school with me from a deranged fallen angel; I think that gives you leniency points. Besides, I don't want to sleep without you to keep me safe," She said it normally enough, maybe even a tad bit mischievous, but I knew she was doing her best to hide the fear that was in her mind still. I kissed the top of her head, easing up next to the stern looking officer.

"Anyone injured?"

"No sir,"

"Did you catch a look at the shooter?"

"No sir,"

"Get home safe," He said and I was able to drive onto the main road. Noel only lived about a mile from me and the short route lead us right by my house, but I didn't want to risk my parents spotting my truck, so we looped around the long route until we pulled up in the driveway. Noel opened the security app and selected something, causing the garage door to open, and I pulled inside next to her Chevy Avalanche. We hesitated, both searching for any mental signs of fallen angels, but everything was quiet in her house when we finally entered. She used her app again and lights came on in the living room, kitchen, the main level hallway, and the upstairs hallway. She trailed behind me as I did a thorough search through her entire house, but found that there were no signs of anything evil. We ended up back in the kitchen and she pulled some leftovers out.

"Your girlfriends are checking in, asking if you're okay, no one was hurt except that Sadie has a bump on her head which Uriah is taking good care of, winky face. Are all of our friends having sex tonight or is that just my impression?" I set her phone back down at the end of my comment to look up at her from where I sat at the dining table. Noel watched me for a long moment, trying to hide whatever was going on in her head, before bending over with a laughing fit. I couldn't help but follow suit until I was gripping the edge of the table, my stomach aching, and yet I couldn't stop until she finally pushed off the counter and came over to me. She sat down on my lap, pressing her hands on either side of my face, and then kissed my forehead.

"I love you Matt, I love you so much," She kissed my forehead again before we rubbed noses and she stood back up. I held to her hips though and she ran her fingers through my hair, waiting for me to say something.

"I love you too Noel," She smiled before leaning down and sharing a quick kiss before she went back to the counter to heat up leftovers. I ended up with a plate of two deep fried chicken breasts, mashed potatoes, and fruit jello. Noel had turkey, rice, and the rest of the fruit jello. We didn't speak while we ate or even as we did the dishes. It was midnight, so I scooped her up, a laugh escaping her lips, and carried her upstairs to her bedroom. The walls were a navy blue and a light turquoise with a white trim. Her bed had a white canopy over it with navy blue sheets and white fleur-de-lis pattern all over it that was outlined in turquoise, custom made and silk sheets to go with it all. Noel disappeared in her bathroom and it didn't take long before I could hear the water in the shower running. I took off my shoes, socks, and shirt before getting under the covers to relax. One of my football jerseys hung neatly, the neck of the hanger hooked around the doorknob to her walk-in closet, and I smiled. The water stopped and a few minutes went by before she came out of her closet in one of my old t-shirts that I'd let her steal. It came down just passed her butt and she smiled at me before crawling under the covers. Her head rested between my chest and shoulder, one hand wrapped around my arm, the other running up and down my chest, and our legs tangled together.

"You know, Taylor thinks it's freaking insane that we sleep like this, but don't _sleep together_," She murmured after a while, a finger carefully tracing the grooves of my abs.

"Taylor doesn't really get a say in what we do, now does she?" I whispered back, feeling the dip of her spine through her shirt, and curve of her hip.

"Abstinence till marriage is a very foreign term to her, she kept making fun of Coach in health class every time he gave us the abstinence speech, and said he only talked so much about it because he's never done it," I chuckled because Taylor's sense of humor was so opposite of Noel's.

"Well it's not a foreign term to us," I responded before breaking out in a huge yawn. She laughed and pulled up her body until she flat out laid on top me, her elbows propped up against my chest as she looked down at me. From under her shirt, she pulled out a plain silver chain that had a promise ring hanging from it.

"You know, I feel your heartbeat, and I know I'm safe. Even if we were surrounded by a thousand armed fallen angels' hell bent on my destruction, as long as I'm with you, I know I'll be okay," She smiled when I did and I pushed a couple of stray strands of hair back behind her ear.

"I love you gorgeous,"

"I love you too handsome," She laid her head down in the middle of my chest and I stroked her hair until I fell asleep myself.

**AN: You do a great job, but I'm going to say it anyway, please review!**


	7. Just for Today

**AN: Awesome reviews that totally made my day. Thank you so much you guys!**

Noel's POV

"I remember I thought you looked like an angel wrapped in pink so soft and warm. You've had me wrapped around your finger since the day you were born . . . You're beautiful baby from the outside in . . . Go on, take on this whole world . . . When you were in trouble that crooked little smile could melt my heart of stone.  
Now look at you, I've turned around and you've almost grown . . . You're beautiful baby from the outside in. Chase your dreams but always know the road that'll lead you home again. Go on, take on this whole world. But to me you know you'll always be, my little girl."

"Oh shit!" I gasped, scrambling to pull my phone off my nightstand, realizing it wasn't the radio I kept dozing off to, but instead the ringtone set for my dad. My fingers fumbled to slide the bar before I pressed the phone to my ear.

"Daddy?" Matt's eyes opened drowsily and his fingertips grazed my shoulder with a lazy smile curving his lips. My throat closed up at just how perfect he was before my mind yanked me back to the more important priority.

"I just saw the news. There was a shooter at your volleyball game. Are you okay? What happened?" I could hear mom mumbling to him in the background.

"It was three fallen angels who were named Tristan, Sam, and Dabria. Tristan shot at me and Matt with bullets infused with devil craft, but we're completely fine, not a scratch. We didn't see—"

"Matt is there with you?" Dad cut me off. I felt my stomach crumple into a little ball, realizing my words had slipped out before I could reel them back in. Matt's eyes were no longer drowsy as he watched me.

"Well, in case they came to the house, so I wasn't alone," We hadn't told my parents that Matt was my guardian angel. It was easier to get around their rules with Matt as a "human" than someone who was mind speaking with me just as regularly as they did.

"I guess that does make me feel better that he's with you because your mom and I won't be able to catch a flight back for three days. So he can stay until then. We'll talk more when we see you. For now, you're on lockdown. I don't want you leaving the house for any reason, do you understand? I don't care if your legs feel like they're on fire, you don't go for a run. I don't care if a random delivery guy comes to the door, you don't open it. I don't care if you see someone get mauled outside by a bear in the backyard, you don't step one foot out of the door. Your mom is going to call Gran B and let her know you're staying at a friend's house for the weekend, so she doesn't need to check up on you. We won't be home till Monday night, so don't bother going to school, if they even have it, and don't go anywhere. You got that Princess?" It wasn't until the end that his voice softened and it was like he was standing right there and I could see the terrified father on the inside.

"I got it daddy, don't leave the house for anything. Can I talk to mom?" I traced patterns with my finger all over Matt's chest and he looked like he was about to fall asleep again.

"Yeah, she's about ready to rip the phone out of my hand anyway. I love you Princess,"

"I love you too daddy," I said gently before hearing the exchange between hands.

"Noel? Are you okay baby? Did Dabria hurt you? Or the others? Thank God you made it home safe and is Matt okay too? Remember he's a lot more breakable than you," I almost barked a laugh because Matt was far from breakable with his tough guardian angel skin and the same quick healing that all Nephilim and fallen angels were equipped with. I couldn't tell her that though.

"We're both okay mama, I swear, not even a single bruise. We got out when the police managed to break the steel bars off the outside of the doors. The fallen angels couldn't shoot because we'd made it to the center of the crowd and they wouldn't risk their bullets hitting anyone else,"

"Why are you talking about fallen angels and devil craft in front of Matt?" My mom hissed.

"Because he's in the shower? I'm not stupid mom," I gave her brief dose of a snotty teenager because that would really convince her I was telling the truth. Matt's chest shook with the effort of not letting his laugh escape. I smiled at him and started to trace his fine facial features.

"Oh thank God, that would take a lot of explaining. I guess we should let you go; dad's going to start on some leads as to why fallen angels seem to have come back into the picture. I love you sweetheart, be safe,"

"I love you too mom and you better do the same," With that we hung up and I let out an exasperated sigh as I dropped my head against Matt's warm chest. He chuckled this time and I felt his lips meet the top of my head before his head hit the pillow again. We didn't talk for a while; I committed his perfect heartbeat to memory. It was my lullaby, my wake up call, my comfort, and my shield from all the bad things in the world. His heartbeat meant he was alive and that's all I needed to make it through my life was my Matt. Volleyball, school, and even my friends could all leave me in the dust. As long as Matt was there to help me back to my feet, I'd be all right, fantastic actually.

"That went over smoothly," He murmured and I gave him a look.

"Says the guy who didn't have to make two peeps as I formulated whole answers on the spot,"

"Don't be grumpy," He teased, his hands wrapping around the back of my thighs before pushing me up, so we were face to face.

"I'm not grumpy," I muttered indignantly and he chuckled in response before bringing his mouth to mine. I forgot about my parents, my team, and the world around me. The arms that held me were my anchor to this moment and I could never be happier. His teeth grazed my bottom limp and a soft exhale of breath blow out before I could stop it. I couldn't remember to be embarrassed as this kiss took me closer to cloud nine. The heat of his hands on my back through the thin cotton of his old shirt, every pulse that drummed through my wrists where they pressed on the sides of his neck, and I was a lost soul. We broke apart, my forehead against his cheek, and we learned what oxygen was for again. I pressed a kiss to his jaw and realized there was no paranoia. My parents wouldn't be yelling for the door to be wide open or us jumping apart every time we kissed because someone was coming down the stairs or hall. This was what life would be like when we went off to college.

"You're right, you're far from grumpy," Matt wiggled his eyebrows and I couldn't help but laugh as I pushed off of him. He frowned, catching my wrist, and then we could both hear the tremendous thunder emanate from my stomach, "But you are hungry."

"That I am and I want you to give me a piggy back ride to the kitchen," Such a request didn't phase Matt and I was reminded just how tolerant and willing he was to make me happy. So that's how I got to the kitchen, Matt's hands hooked behind my knees as he walked, and set me down next to the refrigerator.

"Did I ever tell you how good you look in my shirt? You pull it off so much better than me," He whispered in my ear, arms wrapping loosely around my waist as he hugged me from behind, and I went on my tip toes to kiss his cheek before pulling out bagel bites for breakfast.

"Of course I do, I'm way better looking than you," He grinned evilly before trying to catch me again as I sprinted around to the other side of island. We watched the other's every movement and I faked out to the left before going to the right. Matt didn't fall for it though and caught me. I laughed as I rested my hands on his bare chest. From the slightly taller, barely muscular boyfriend in sixth grade, he was ripped now, and six foot seven. Then there was me, six foot one, which was tall for a girl, but I still felt small compared to Matt, which was its own reassurance. Matt's lips curved upwards as he kissed my neck, leaving a fiery path, and I stood completely motionless at the feeling of his lips on my too hot skin. He kissed on to my cheek, making a slow line from the corner of my jaw to my cheekbone, before dropping down to my lips. I locked my arms around his neck, keeping him for as long as I wanted him, and I wouldn't have minded one bit if this kiss went on forever. Then Matt's stomach voiced its own opinion and we laughed as our lips fell away from each other. I popped the bagel bites in the microwave toaster and pulled out a Mountain Dew before sitting atop the counter.

"Are you going to become a rebel or something? Bagel bites and Mountain Dew for breakfast? So_ this_ is what you do when your parents aren't home. No wild parties or getting in the alcohol cabinet, nope, just eating inappropriate foods for each meal," I laughed as I played with the hair at the back of his neck. It was soft, almost like down, and it was strangle addictive to touch.

"I know, I'm such a badass," Matt wrapped his arms around me and rested his head on my shoulder, breathing softly, and I held him back, still playing with his hair. Some days, coming out of class, Matt would pull me aside before we met with all of our friends, and just hold me. There never seemed to be a particular reason, most of the time we didn't even kiss or talk, just stood in utter silence. Then we'd pull apart, hold hands, and walk down the hall as if nothing had happened. The timer went off and Matt kissed the nape of my neck as he pulled away to remove the bagel bites. I playfully kicked his butt and he swatted my foot away when I went to do it the second time. I grabbed him his own Mountain Dew and we went in the living room to eat. Matt texted his parents that he was staying at Josh's house for the entire weekend. Josh was the friend that Matt's parents absolutely adored and wouldn't question it.

"Coach said there won't be practice for the next three official school days to allow recuperation time for everyone who is traumatized by what happened at the gym, plus, the school will be closed for the whole week while the police conduct their investigation, success!" Matt laughed at my enthusiasm. I didn't mind school, but now I could have Matt all to myself without volleyball or homework to pull me away.

"You're mom still doesn't like me, does she?" I wondered aloud while we watched an old action movie with badly timed fake blood and weapons with clear safety tips on the ends.

"She says you hog my time and she doesn't like that I always do stuff with you either at your house or in public and the fact that she was the only mom at the bake sale without her son's jersey on because you had my away game one, even though they all wore coats because it was cold, so no one knew but her. She'll just have to get over it though, because I plan on even more of my time being hogged by you in the future," I smiled as we kissed a couple of times before a woman's shriek from the movie made us pull apart with a laugh.

"Hey, you're doing well in math because of me, that's got to count for something,"

"She thinks you let me cheat off of you on tests. If only she knew how cruel you are as to help me work through every problem I don't get instead of just giving me the answer," He pouted for a moment before suddenly scooping me into his lap when the bagel bites were gone. I wrapped my arms around his neck as we smiled at each other.

"Just to be clear, I was not at all thrilled with your little plan at the school the other night. He could've caught you. I know you're a powerful half and half so to speak, but devil craft is lethal in any sense to anyone. Please, don't ever try to play hero again. I know you don't want me or someone else hurt because they're after you, but I don't want to risk losing you either," I sighed; I couldn't tell him that I didn't completely agree with that statement. I knew where he was coming from, but I couldn't imagine if the fallen angel had gotten a hold of Matt. Who was to say they couldn't possibly rip his wings out and take the feeling from his body? What if he survived such a thing and stopped wanting to be with me? I didn't want to risk Matt's life as much as he didn't want to risk mine.

"Just promise me that you'll protect you as much as you'll protect me, okay? You're self sacrificing, I know that, but if something happened to you . . . I don't think I could function anymore. I'd never feel again. I'd never love again. So you have to stay safe too, not just me," Matt's eyes were deep and thoughtful as he processed my words and I could feel the soft tug of his fingers playing with the ends of my hair. I pressed the side of my palm to his cheek so he would look at me.

"Noel, if something did happen to me, I wouldn't hold it against you if—"

"No, don't you dare talk like that Matthew Anderson, because nothing will happen to you . . . Please baby, promise me?" Matt sighed and finally nodded in surrender.

"I promise that I will look out for myself as well as you,"

"As much as you look out for me,"

"As much as I look out for you," He corrected, his thumb traced over the shape of my lips before both hands cupped my face.

"Good," I whispered, kissing his right palm. Matt smiled ruefully at me, knowing how good I was at getting my way, and I smiled back because it was true, at least with him. I sent up a silent prayer that this nightmare or murderous fallen angels would cease and it would safe for me to go back to a normal life where devil craft wasn't a threat.

**AN: I know, not much action, but I figured Noel and Matt could use some personal time. Please review of course!**


	8. Scared

Nora's POV

Patch and I hadn't gotten home until well passed eleven o'clock. I was desperate to get more details from Noel about what happened. I wouldn't wake her up if she was sleeping I decided. She probably needed it after such a horrific experience. Matt had left at about seven in the evening and I wasn't sure what had happened over the weekend. Patch had approved that he could stay. What Noel didn't know was how much more trusting Patch was about their relationship than I was which really made no sense at all, except that I was pretty sure she was more open about it with him than me, which again, really made no sense at all. We could both hear the TV when we opened the door and Noel came barreling around the corner to give each of us a tight hug. It wasn't in a terrified or scared way, just a, I missed you a lot way.

"Do you know how much food it takes to keep two bored teenagers from starving to death over the course of three days? A lot more than was in our fridge," Noel quipped, crossing her arms over her chest as if she was the one being stern with us.

"Yes, you've withered away," My husband teased with a smirk at our daughter. Much like Patch, Noel had inherited the perfect physique of an athlete who didn't even have to work out, which she did anyway. Even if she was my daughter, I was a little jealous of her perfect curves and model worthy body.

"I lost a pound dad, for all we know, I'm underweight, and that's a health risk," I looked between them, how were they still on this conversation after what had happened Friday night?

"Then I hope a strong wind stirs up and blows you away because you've become so flimsy," He said without any regret. My mouth fell open, but Noel only laughed. They were staring at each other, probably mind speaking, and then even Patch laughed out loud at whatever Noel had said, probably far from anything I would've deemed appropriate.

"Okay, you two have had your fun. Show us what happened at the volleyball game," So we all stood there motionless for several minutes as everything that had occurred from the eyes of Noel until the police were able to open the doors. She'd hadn't seen Dabria and I was grateful for at least that, though it didn't make me feel any better that Dabria knew who my daughter was. Patch suddenly met my eyes and his own grew soft.

"You need to go to bed Angel. You've barely slept less than thirty minutes since we called Noel," I wanted to object, but a huge yawn stopped me. Noel sat back down on the couch while Patch flat out carried me upstairs. I tried to hold on to my anger towards Dabria and my fear for Noel, but I couldn't fight the weight of my heavy eyelids as Patch gave me a good night kiss.

Patch's POV

"You mind showing me the unedited version of what really happened that night?" I asked once I made it back downstairs. Noel didn't look surprised or even the least bit panicked. She flicked off the TV as I sat down in my favorite arm chair and watched me calmly.

"Why didn't you call me out when mom was down here?" She countered with curiosity filling her voice.

"I could've called you out when you told me what happened over the phone Saturday morning, but I didn't, quit stalling," She smirked at me, her shoulders shaking for a minute as she contained her laughter, and then her solemn gaze returned to mine.

"You have to tell me what you know first," She was like Nora in that sense; she didn't want to give away too much without gaining back something in return, especially information. Noel had her ace up her sleeve, but I also had mine.

"Matt's your guardian angel, isn't he? You know, I didn't figure it out until I took your mom upstairs because I couldn't sense your energy anymore. Then I noticed from when we'd walked into the house and coming back down the stairs, the different shift after the break. His energy is all wrapped up in yours, like a twist, and humans can't do that with fallen angels or Nephils, but guardian angels can, which happens with prolonged contact," Noel only smiled and shrugged with a nod, still remaining laid back.

"He told me, that day that you called him, and we decided to wait to tell you. Guess the cat's out of the bag," She did jazz hands before the smile slipped off her face and she looked at me seriously. I felt her memory go back to the volleyball game and she played every adrenaline filled moment from watching the bullet barely miss Matt to jumping out of the window. It was all from her eyes, but that was okay. She was observant and caught small details, just in case they mattered later. When she reached the end of her mental reel, I didn't bother digging around in her head because I knew she would pick up on it, and instead went back to my own.

"Daddy?" I didn't hear her until she repeated herself. I was trying to put a puzzle together that didn't have all the pieces. I understood that Noel was powerful and would prove a threat to fallen angels, but there was something I wasn't seeing, and I knew I needed to find out what it was soon.

"Yes Princess?"

"Will they come for you and mom, if they know it means getting to me?" She spoke as if she was centuries old and not my sixteen year old daughter. There were times I wanted to turn back the clock and watch her grow up all over again. I didn't want to hear her talking like that. We were blunt with each other though, we didn't sugar coat, even if Nora wished we did. It wouldn't be fair to Noel in my opinion.

"It's a possibility, but that doesn't necessarily mean it _will_ happen. That's no way to live. I've been there; when Hank used your mom against me . . . It's feels like you'll never be happy again. Which means there's just as much of a risk with fallen angels taking Matt, but there's no one hundred percent guarantee they will, right?"

"Right, I just . . . if there's something I can _do_, daddy, I—"

"The most you can do right now is be safe. Until we figure out what's going on, no going out with friends, even a big group. For volleyball, I'll be sitting in at your practices and of course your games and tournaments, and I guess, to at least ease some of the stress, you can have Matt over as much as possible," She got that look, like she wasn't completely agreeing with everything I said.

"Now you need to tell me about Dabria. Mom kept thinking about her and how much she hated her," I didn't ask why Noel had taken a peek in Nora's mind. Then it really hit me, she was just as much in this as we were. Trying to keep her on a need-to-know basis wasn't going to fly for long. She knew so much now and there really wasn't a point to being overprotective of someone who didn't need it nearly as much as before. I didn't know why that was so much easier to come to terms with about Noel. I certainly never came to terms with it about Nora, no matter how hard I tried. Though they were mother and daughter, there was just something distinctly different about Noel, and maybe that was me.

"I was the one who ripped her wings out and made her fall after she tried to kill your mom. Her hobby had been getting under your mom's skin and helping me with some leads on my . . . former line of work. Needless to say, there were days your mom hated me for it. Dabria should've been eliminated along with the rest of the fallen angels and that's where this mess begins. You're powerful and I guess part of that is because nothing like you has ever been created before. Why you're being specifically targeted by fallen angels, I don't know, but they seem to have an increased resistance to mental attack," Noel sighed as she ran her fingers through her hair and slouched more in the couch.

"Life was a lot easier when it was volleyball, Matt, parents, and friends. When did that become so complicated?"

"When you protected your mom in that alleyway in England," She half smiled, resting her arms on her knees that were curled almost to her chest, and set her chin on them.

"So there's got to be a way to stop the fallen angels. To send them back, right?"

"I don't know yet. Now that we're home, I'll try to track down some old contacts, and find out exactly what happened to allow fallen angels to be released. Until then, you need to get some sleep, princess, it's late," She watched the fireplace sightlessly as she took in my words before standing up. As she moved to go up the stairs, she stopped at my chair, and kissed my cheek.

"I love you daddy," I half smiled in reassurance though I doubted it would do much now that the threat had finally arrived.

"I love you too princess," I whispered as she went up the stairs to go to bed.

Matt's POV

"So mom, I've got some news to tell you," Noel held my hand in her lap as we sat at the barstools of the kitchen's bar area. Her dad knew now, but I had a feeling it was going to be a whole different story when we told her mom what I was.

"What kind of news?" Mrs. Cipriano shot her gaze to ours.

_She probably thinks you're pregnant, way to go. _Noel rolled her eyes at me.

_Shut up Matt. _

"Matt's my guardian angel, mama, it's good news," Noel's father was getting his stuff from work and therefore it was only the three of us. She raised an eyebrow at the both of us as if she thought we were joking. Then her eyes narrowed when she realized we weren't. Forget running from fallen angels, this subject felt a lot more on the edge of destruction. Noel stared blandly at her mom, as if they were discussing the weather, and not my heavenly mission to protect Noel no matter what.

"How long have you known? Does your dad know? Of course he knows or else you probably wouldn't be telling me right now," I chuckled awkwardly and Noel squeezed my hand, shot me an award winning smile, and then looked back at her mom.

"When we got home from England, dad figured it out last night, but he told me I had to be the one to tell you this morning, along with the much more . . . R rated version of what happened Friday night,"

"It's PG-13 at best," I told Noel and she laughed. It was good that she was so relaxed, because her easy demeanor seemed to be keeping her mom relatively calmer than I expected. A freak out would've been in order, but Noel took the situation in stride, and gave her mom a half smile before they looked at one another as Noel shared the memory. Mrs. Cipriano gasped as her eyes widened before the maternal thoughts took hold.

"Are you sure you two aren't hurt?" I heaved a sigh as the tension in the room disintegrated and Noel nodded, looking honest.

"Not a scratch mom, I swear," It was then that Noel's dad walked through the door and caught his wife's gaze. It was obvious by Mrs. Cipriano's locked up muscles that she was angry and Noel's dad just shrugged before gesturing upstairs. Noel shuddered as they disappeared at the top of the flight and I looked down on her curiously.

"What's the matter?"

"They'll be up there for hours, that's all I have to say about that, so we'll probably be fending for ourselves as far as food goes. Unless you want to make something more elaborate, it's Mac and Cheese for lunch," I laughed and pulled her onto my lap as she went to get up. She rested one arm on the back of my neck while the other rested against my chest, her fingers lightly interlinked.

"I told you it wouldn't be that bad, but you prepared for the worst anyway," She teased, kissing my cheek, and I laughed a little.

"That's because we both know you have a ridiculously optimistic perspective when it comes to this kind of stuff and you'll be so surprised that the conversation didn't go the way you expected that you won't even know how to work damage control, which is exactly why you need me," She giggled at me.

"So that's all I need you for?" She asked with a mischievous smile and I felt both our heart rates pick up.

"Come here," I muttered and we kissed. When we pulled away, both breathing heavily, she smiled, and kissed the tip of my nose before getting off. The stove top started on boiling the water and I smiled because Noel looked just as sexy in her sweatpants with the volleyball on the butt and a concert t-shirt than she did in her favorite red summer dress. She laughed aloud when she caught me staring and I distracted myself with the newspaper that was still talking about what happened at the gym.

"Do you ever think I'm the one who can fix this fallen angel problem?" She asked and I looked up slowly, fighting the emotion that built up in my chest.

"I try really hard not too," It was the truth. I could take on a three hundred pound defensive tackle without blinking, but the thought of Noel risking her life to destroy the fallen angels terrified me to the bone. Maybe she was the answer, maybe she wasn't, and I sincerely prayed for the latter.

"Matt?" She asked as she walked back over to me, placing her hands on my neck, and read my face like the open book that was to her. She searched and found all the answers, because it was impossible to hide anything from my Noel, "I'm scared too."


	9. Victory Before the Fall

**AN: Definitely back on to a semi-daily post again. I just hit a story block, but I'm good now.**

Noel's POV

My head was most definitely not in the game today. On top of that small fact, it was state. Every nerve ending, every thought, and every breath should have been preparing for another state championship win. Yet here I was, leading a volleyball cheer, and faking an overconfident smile to all my players who thought I was okay. Dad, mom, Matt, Gran B, Aunt Vee, Uncle Gavin, and their son Tyler sat in some available seats for the game watchers on the side of the court. I caught Matt's eye and he smiled cockily at me. At any moment, someone could start shooting devil craft infused bullets. It hadn't really bothered me until I was reminded of the hundreds of people that came for the state tournament and that my parents were here. With fallen angels back, dad had a target on his head again, along with my mom, and that was making me feel on edge. Taylor set me up with a beautiful set and I tried to release some of my tension by crushing it a little more than was necessary, considering it was warm ups. My hit landed in the back left corner, which was what any hitter wanted, but _I_ wanted my parents at home where it was safe.

"Go ahead and bring it in ladies," Our coaches called in sync and we jogged over to them. As was tradition, Coach Parker led us in prayer, and then we went to stand at the back line. We held hands as we strode up to the net and high fived our biggest rivals before taking our spots on the court. I stood in the middle hitter position, my arms stretched above my head, and my fingers splayed as if preparing for a block. Just calm down and do what you do best. Taylor pinched the back of my uniform shirt and made it billow to help cool me down though I hadn't broken a sweat yet. I just needed to kick ass in this game and then we could go have dinner and go home. That's what I was playing for today.

I heard Sadie serve, watched her land it almost on the line at the back, and their librero missed it by a mere inch. We all hooted and hollered as we went to the center to congratulate Sadie before returning to our spots. Again she served, this time they'd ran the back line, and got it up. I'd backed off the net and it was clear they were setting up for a middle hit. Taylor and I stretched to full height, feet leaving the ground, blocking it, and tipping it straight down the back of their middle hitter, making it impossible for their rover to bump it back up for a save. Again, parents and patrons cheered, and we all patted backs, reminding one another to stay alert for a return, and Sadie went to serve again. This was my life for thirty or so minutes until I rotated out after my six serve streak and our librero, Ally, came in.

_Looking good babe. _Matt spoke to my mind as I drank some water, still on my feet, readying to call out to my team for plays and instructions.

_You just like the Spandex. _I teased and I caught a quick glance of him with a huge smile on his face.

"Tip!" I yelled, giving Sadie enough warning to dive, recovering the ball, and Hannah set up for a hit. I finally felt my mind move away from fallen angels and being a worry wart to enjoying the game and why I loved it so much. I rotated back in and Taylor and I did our quick handshake as we started up again. With a quick set from Tay, I crushed it down their librero's throat, and she ended up bumping it all the way over to the next court, unable to control the hit.

"That's my girl!" Taylor yelled out loud as we met in the middle and everyone took their turn smacking my butt as we went back to the game. We finished our game with a flourished win. The crowd erupted in a roar and Matt spun me around twice as I ran to him in excitement after our team exploded in cheers and excitement.

"Told you you'd win," Matt whispered in my ear as my feet returned to the ground and I smacked him in the chest before curling my hand around the back of his neck, looking for a kiss, and receiving a very passionate one. The sound of victory faded out as I stood there, eyes closed, all other senses centering on Matt as he held me, and our kiss went on. He was my everything, my one and only, and always would be. I forgot that I'd just won state again or that my coaches would be accepting the trophy. I was too immersed by the perfect, loving kisses of my boyfriend. At least until dad cleared his throat so loudly I thought he might start hacking up something. I blushed as we pulled away and Matt's answering smile was heartfelt as he slid his nose against mine.

"Noel! Pictures!" Taylor screeched and I eased out of Matt's arms, purposefully not making eye contact with my parents or guests, and went over to my team.

"Glad to see so much color in your cheeks," Sadie teased and I stuck my tongue out at her before smiling for the newspapers, school photographers, parents, and then posing with our coaches next to our second state trophy.

"Noel, as captain of the volleyball team, what would you say was the most important factor for you all to take home the state championship win again, two years in a row?" A reporter asked eagerly as the cameras finally stopped flashing.

"Every year we grow closer as a team and that's always a factor, but I believe this year specifically was trust. It's knowing your librero is going to get that ball up and your setter is going to know exactly what you need to crush that kill. We don't have to double check, we don't have to communicate the simple things anymore, and that's because we've all proven our selves to be trustworthy, dedicated players, and that we each know what is expected of us by our team and coaches. I trust every single one of these girls with their facet of the game and that led us to a state win again,"

"Thank you so much!" The reporter said as he moved away from the crowd and I was bombarded with two more reporters before being able to squirm myself back to my team. We hugged and of course told each other what a great job we did, before everything had gone that was necessary to be allowed to leave. Matt all ready had my bag slung over his shoulder, my sweatpants and lettermen jacket were nicely set on his other arm, along with my water bottle in his hand.

"I love you," I told him as I slipped on my pants and buttoned up my jacket.

"I love you too," He replied with a smile and I was very tempted to kick start that kiss again except that I was very aware of the other people of our group. So I settled with him planting a kiss on my forehead before I received a hug from Gran B and everyone else chorused in congratulations for the win. Matt wrapped an arm around my shoulders and I hooked my fingers in the belt loops of his jeans as we made our way out of the building and into the snow covered parking lot. There were still light flakes falling from the grey sky and I managed to catch one on my tongue. Matt laughed and gave me a look that made me feel like a kid again.

"How about Tyler can ride with you this time?" Mom suggested and I did my best to hide my disgust. Their family had flown into Augusta early in the morning, so Matt and I had taken my black Chevy Avalanche to the game while my parents and Gran B took dad's truck to pick them up and then head over. He hadn't had time to try to flirt and I was hoping that Matt's clearly more pronounced and intimidating physique would finally keep him off of me.

"Yeah, sure," I only mumbled a little bit but the adults didn't notice, or chose not to. Matt was nice enough to gesture for Tyler to sit in the back, and we sat up front, with me driving. My favorite Augusta diner was thirty minutes away unfortunately, making for an awkward silence in my vehicle. I followed dad as we made our way out of the parking lot.

"That was a really intense game," Tyler said after a few minutes and Matt rolled his eyes, though the other boy couldn't see.

"Do you play any sports?" Matt asked blandly.

_I wanted to beat the crap out of him, Noel, I'm not kidding. The pervert couldn't take his eyes off of you the entire game. Not that you're not sexy, you are, but I'm used to being able to tell other guys to back off the moment I catch them checking you out. Your mom would've gotten all bent out of shape if I'd done that though. _

_Well after a kiss like that, maybe he'll finally stop. _

_You're still thinking about it too? So am I. _Matt moved his eyebrows up and down and I barely contained my giggle at how giddy he made me feel. We finally turned on to the road and I just kept my eyes on dad's truck because Matt was still trying to make me laugh and I didn't know how to explain that to Tyler if I just randomly starting giggling like a freak.

"Not really, sometimes I play for fun, but I do enjoy chess," I bit my lip because I really wanted to laugh now.

"Your truck is very nice," Tyler said, realizing no one was trying to speak. I did love my truck. It was my baby.

"Yeah, dad wasn't sure about the leather interior, but it really has made it so much more comfy," Matt switched the radio stations when the commercial came on and I felt both our faces light up because it was our song, God Gave Me You, by Blake Shelton. So even with an awkward Tyler in the car, we started singing to it, singing to each other, and Matt held my hand. Dad took the turn off and I continued to follow. The song came to its sweet end all too soon and Matt pressed his lips to my hand. We were on a quieter street now, closer to the diner. I glanced at Matt and smiled at him.

So the screech of the tires meeting my ears didn't really occur to me until I was hit sidelong. It happened too quick, yet in slow motion, as the force flipped my truck over, and in the next blink, it was over. Whoever hit us peeled off and I took a moment to check that I could feel everything.

"Noel?" Matt croaked and I felt his hand squeeze mine and I squeezed back. My head hurt like hell and I was pretty sure I was scratched and bruised, but nothing major. I managed to move my head to look at Matt and he didn't seem to look any worse for wear either.

"Hey Tyler, you okay?" I asked.

"Yeah, I'm all right," I heard him respond. The windows were shattered and glass was everywhere. I heard footsteps run up and someone crouched on my side of the overturned truck.

"Noel? Are you hurt?"

"Daddy?" I turned my head and his eyes were squinted, checking over how ever much he could see of me, seeing if I was visibly hurt. His jaw was tense and I thought about how much we looked alike when we were angry and fierce. He took off his jacket and put it under me.

"Can you unbuckle?" I released Matt's hand. My fingers felt slow, but were not beyond working. I braced one hand on the ground to brace for my released body weight and clicked the button. Dad's hand cradled the back of my head as I slid down to the ground. With some maneuvering on my part, he helped pull me out through the window, and the funny thought occurred to me that I was glad I was so skinny, making it easy to fit through. Mom helped me make sure I could sit up as dad moved to help Matt out on the other side. The faint wail of sirens could be heard in the distance. Tyler was the least scratched up as Uncle Gavin got him out with minimal difficulty. With a little help from mom, I stood up, just in time for Matt to make his way around the corner of the truck. We both moved toward the other and he cradled my head gently between his hands, blue eyes roving over my face in desperation, making sure I really wasn't hurt. Seeing as his examination was complete, he wrapped his arms around me, and I felt a shudder run through me at how close I'd come to possibly losing him. I pressed my face into his chest, reassured by his heartbeat, and I could feel his fingers dig lightly into my skin, clinging to me.

"What happened?" Tyler asked with uncertainty.

"Someone came hauling ass down the alley, wasn't paying attention, and crashed into you. We didn't catch a license plate when they sped off, but it can't be hard for the cops to track a vehicle whose front end is that messed up now," Dad responded calmly and I listened to an ambulance pull up, but I refused to release Matt.

"Anyone who was involved in the crash will need an examination and a possible head injury evaluation, but considering you're all standing up, it seems you have minor injuries," I peeked at the two male EMTs. Matt's face left my hair where he'd buried it.

"Noel first," A police car pulled up. I sat on the edge of the ambulance as one of the EMTs examined me as Matt was examined by the other.

"She's just fine, mom and dad," My EMT told my parents who'd began to hover. Mom released a breath and dad watched me, making sure he agreed with diagnosis, and then smiled a little.

"Same here," The other EMT voiced and Matt and I both moved so Tyler could be looked over.

"I need a statement," The police officer reminded and I told him my account of the story and then dad told his as a witness. Matt didn't leave my side though, not for a moment, as he held me against him. Dad said it was a white Ford truck that had hit us. I nuzzled my face into Matt's chest, feeling exhausted, and Matt's lips pressed against my forehead gently.

_Fallen angels? _I asked daddy.

_Probably princess, probably. _Mom wrapped her arms around his waist as he held her. The police officer filled out the rest of the report with dad's help and Gran B called a tow truck and a rental car service. The officer handed dad the information as mom made an insurance call. Everyone was doing something. Then there was me, frozen by the fact that I'd just been involved in a car accident. I blinked slowly and looked up at Matt. I felt guilty all of a sudden, even if the archangels had meant him for me, how could I possibly justify the amount of danger I'd put him in? There wasn't a good enough reason to risk Matthew Anderson. I didn't feel him in my head, but he lightly tipped my chin up with a finger, and looked at me with vibrant eyes.

"Don't you dare start feeling guilty Noel. This isn't your fault," I felt my lower lip tremble as he spoke before he pressed his lips to mine and all my qualms disappeared. Matt was here, alive, and that was all I needed.

**AN: Please review!**


	10. A Little Paranoid

Matt's POV

School felt like prison on Monday morning. We'd had a full week off for repairs to the gym and for the police investigation that didn't shed any light on the shooting. Noel sat next to me in math class, her ankle hooked with mine, and our hands entwined under the table where our teacher couldn't see, though it was probably obvious considering that Noel's arm was pressed up against mine. Most teachers overlooked the contact and didn't make a comment. Mrs. Smith was explaining two new equations to our class. It didn't feel right to be sitting here, knowing that Noel and I had sprinted through the hall just outside this classroom to escape a fallen angel that could've killed her. I looked over at her as we did a practice problem, but she was busy actually focusing on schoolwork.

"Mr. Anderson, would you like to share your work with the class?" Mrs. Smith called me out, noticing the blank sheet of graph paper.

_You plug in the initial value into the i variable and then you put the percentage in decimal form into the t and then the amount of time, which is quarterly, into the n, and then you have your answer. _I repeated Noel word for word and Mrs. Smith looked mildly impressed that I hadn't needed any of it on paper. Our teacher agreed with my answer and went on to explain something else about the equation.

_Thanks. _

_You've been distracted all morning. Last time I checked, we are still very much high school students, and should be acting like it. The car crash was just a scare and my dad is doing research into the return of the fallen angels. Everything is going to be okay baby. _I kissed the back of her hand quickly when Mrs. Smith wasn't watching and tried to calm down. Noel was right, we both walked away from the car crash, and everything would eventually be okay.

"Noel Cipriano to the office please, Noel Cipriano," The intercom called into our classroom. Mrs. Smith nodded her permission to leave and Noel stood up after giving my hand a squeeze before releasing it.

_What'd you do now?_

_I don't know actually. Dad might've got my Avalanche replaced and left it out front. _She shrugged at a questioning glance from Taylor and left the classroom. My gut twisted and turned at having her out of sight. We were in a school full of students and teachers, fallen angels wouldn't try anything here, right? I didn't feel stable, all the what ifs running through my mind. Each tic tock of the clock was impossible to bear as I waited for Noel to return. A minute passed and I clenched my fists, trying to control the fear that she wasn't back yet, even though it would take at least a minute to get from this class to the main office.

"Mrs. Smith, may I go to the restroom?" I asked, acting much calmer than I felt, and she nodded because she'd released our class for bookwork anyway. It took everything within in me not to run full speed out the door. I took the stairs two at a time, constantly glancing around to make sure no one would catch me freaking out, and made my way hastily toward the front office. I almost stopped short though when I saw not only Noel, but my mom and Mrs. Cipriano.

"Oh Matt, perfect timing, they were just about to call down to your classroom. You and Noel can go get your stuff, we were signing you two out for the day," I barely heard my mom. Noel's eyes scanned my face, reading into my emotions, and I saw her sigh a little as she approached and we headed back upstairs. When out of sight of our mothers, I took her hand in my mine, and she looked up at me with disappointed eyes.

"I can take care of myself too, Matt. You don't need to worry so much. It's going to kill you in the form of a heart attack or something. Then what are we going to do?" I wanted to argue, make her see how much danger could really be lurking around every corner, but I knew it was pointless. Of all the things Noel was, she was stubborn. Her mindset was like a bulldozer, any opposing thoughts were just crushed or shoved out of the way, and she was willing to do whatever it would take to get the job done.

"I'm sorry," I apologized; on some level she did have a point. She smiled up at me and leaned her cheek against my shoulder before we reentered Mrs. Smith's class to retrieve our things and went back to our waiting moms.

"We figured you two deserved a day off after that terrible car accident. We'll go get lunch and go do some shopping," My mom looked at my face for any form of disgruntlement or fear, but I remained a blank slate. Noel took me shopping with her all the time, if it was just her and me of course. I was used to being an active opinion in what she chose to wear. She didn't tell anyone, not even Taylor or Sadie about my willingness to go shopping with her, and I was extremely grateful.

"We'll see if he can survive," Mrs. Cipriano teased over her shoulder as we loaded up in her Chevy Equinox. Noel was finishing up her homework and then grinned at me because that was the last thing on my mind obviously. After a few minutes, we pulled up to a Mexican restaurant, and were seated immediately.

"Mom, isn't this the place that you and dad—"

"Yes, Noel, it is," Mrs. Cipriano said over her menu without looking at her daughter. Noel smirked knowingly though, far from taking it personally, and pulled out her phone to text someone back.

"What would you like to drink?" Noel stared at the waiter as he took all of our orders and then placed some chips and salsa in front of us. She even watched him retreat behind the counter to get the drinks.

_What's wrong? _

_I thought . . . No, I'm just being the paranoid one this time. Don't worry about it. _She squeezed my hand under the table. I watched her, but her features returned to her normal, laid back self. That bothered me even more. It wasn't like her to not tell me. I looked up at the waiter as he set down our drinks, sensing for any malicious intent, but there was nothing. Noel took a sip, pretending to be fine. I could feel where her leg bouncing under the table, a show of being nervous, and again I tried to search for any fallen angels. Nothing.

"I'm going to go to the restroom, excuse me," Noel smiled apologetically before heading towards the girls' bathroom. Following wasn't an option, but I wanted to know exactly what was bothering her. So I settled with waiting until she returned to get some answers.

Noel's POV

_Pound. Pound. Pound. _It felt as if there was a jackhammer inside of my head. Every continuous second was more pain. As gross and unsanitary as it was, I sat on the ground in the big stall that was intended for people in wheel chairs. My knees were curled against my chest as I cradled my head between my hands. I wanted something to just make the pain stop, but it wasn't receding anytime soon. So I would just wait it out, no point in getting everyone all worked up over a headache. I tried to pull out my phone, but the clear pass code screen looked blurry and moved back and forth though I could've sworn my hand was completely still. The waiter, I'd seen him at the state game, I didn't know when, but I had. Now he was here and yet everything about him rung human. I struggled to breathe deeply as I fought to not fall over on my side to curl up in the fetal position. My stomach felt as if it was on fire now, like I was burning from the inside out. I coughed and found blood, I'd bit my tongue. No, there would be no waiting this out, something was wrong.

"Matt," I whimpered softly. My mind was too far up in the air to try to mind speak and I wondered if I just managed to walk through the bathroom door that would be enough to get some help. My legs were numb though and I could feel my heart start to beat faster in a panic. Someone entered the bathroom.

"Help," I squeaked. A woman calmly walked up to the door, pushed the lock back, and stepped in. It wasn't my mom or Mrs. Anderson, but hopefully she'd help. She seesawed in and out of my vision as she stood above me. She crouched down in front of me and pinched my chin between two fingers and I could feel the sharpness of pain as her nails dug into my skin. Fallen angel all of my senses screamed, but I was too weak now but to stare at her face. Her hair was black and eyes piercing as she sneered at me.

"Matt," I moaned, but his name barely carried passed my lips, and I doubted even she could hear it.

"This is her," I heard her smooth voice say to someone else who had entered and I was scooped up. I tried to struggle, but the numbness had spread, and I couldn't even make out the face of whoever was carrying me now. My eyes were closed before we went through the bathroom door and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't open them again.

Nora's POV

"DABRIA! IT WAS DABRIA, PATCH!" My baby, Dabria took my baby, and all I could do was watch as some fallen angel walked out with her through the front door of the restaurant. Some other fallen angels had rushed in and Matt and I were wrapped up in devil craft whips before we took two steps from our table. The waiter had left with Dabria, I saw that part, but nothing about him had caused me to be alarmed up until that point. The rest of the fallen angels left us though, following Dabria out, and I couldn't put together why they hadn't taken me as the Black Hand's daughter. I'd been calm until we got home. I'd wiped Matt's mom's memory clean and we left her at his house. There was no way I was going to convince him to stay there now that Noel had been taken. Patch had been home when we arrived and I showed him what I know. Now, every muscle in Patch's body was rigged and strained, as if they were all about to rip at once. I watched his Adam's apple bob as he swallowed, staring sightlessly out the window, and his jaws were locked together in a grim pursing of his lips. Matt was pacing from one end of the kitchen to the other, eyes fierce and full of hatred.

"Do something," I whimpered and then Patch was a machine like he'd been so many years ago before our daughter was born.

"Noel, was she wearing her lettermen today?" Patch looked at Matt.

"Yes," He replied with a growl. I couldn't begin to fathom how much he was tearing himself apart, if I felt this terrible about Noel, it must've been ten times worse for him.

"Let's pray they haven't ditched her jacket yet," Patch muttered and pulled out his phone. I recognized the app on his phone that was hooked up to a tracking device, all these years and I never realized he'd put one on her jacket, though that should've been obvious.

"Portland, let's go," I stood up to join them and Patch rested his hands on my shoulders.

"I'm going with you. She's my baby, I'm not risking anything," I snapped.

"That's not what I was going to say. I wanted to tell you that you need to listen to whatever plan I come up with. Even if you don't like it, you need to put Noel's safety above my own, okay?" I bit my lip. That was hard to think about. I couldn't live without Patch, even if I had Noel, and we both knew it. I shifted my weight, trying to summon a yes from somewhere in the depths of my heart, but every single no was clogging up my windpipe. So I wrapped my arms around his neck instead, because there wouldn't be an agreement. Matt would get Noel out no matter what, so I would pass that torch to him, Patch and I could face anything together, even death. Patch kissed me hard on the mouth, knowing I hadn't given an answer, but now he didn't expect one. So we clung to each other for a few passionate seconds before pulling away. Patch planted one more kiss on my forehead and we stared at one another for another heated moment before going in the garage. Matt was all ready in the back of Patch's truck, looking grim and impatient. Noel's brand new Avalanche sat beside the truck in the garage. Patch had bought it this morning and planned to show it to her after school. She'd going to see that truck I decided, my baby was going to be okay, and we were going to save her.

**AN: So I'd really appreciate reviews. I know this chapter is a little shorter, but it's a cliff hanger, so it'll make up for it next time. **


	11. Never Safe

Noel's POV

I felt myself groggily come to. My head hurt, I went to touch it, see if there was a bump, but my hands were restrained with metal. It dug into my skin and I bit the inside of my cheek to prevent any sound from escaping. My ankles were crossed, also held together. I could smell the mustiness and the sounds of shuffling could be heard. My eyelids were heavy, but I managed to open them. Well, this didn't look too good. There were five fallen angels in a concrete room, all gazing at me, no judgment, just patient. I recognized the black haired lady from the restaurant, but none of the others were familiar. The concrete dug into my arm, my legs were tucked under me as I leaned back against the wall.

"Who are you?" I whispered, throat dry. The woman smirked and took a couple of steps forward from the others.

"I'm Dabria, bet your daddy has forgotten all about me now that he has that imperfect . . . scum as his wife and then they created you, something that shouldn't even exist. Do you understand? You're the unimaginable, the impossible, and you've thrown the whole world off balance. You didn't ever feel the effects, but we did, in Hell. From the moment you were born we could all feel your soul, it was so tempting, so wished-for, because it was a one of a kind. Any of us could make a Nephilim swear fealty, but you would put up a fight, making the victory so much sweeter. Except, the problem was, we couldn't get to you from Hell. None of could have the one thing we were crazing so badly. An unnamed archangel, for some dark, dark reason, agreed to let a portion of us out. Only a certain amount of us could go after you at one time unfortunately and every time you shot in the wing scars, they were sent back to Hell. You've been very effective, haven't you? Instead of trying to make you swear fealty at the risk of you killing us . . . we decided to just kill you instead with devil craft. Of course it will be sad to see your soul die, but it's for the greater good, don't you agree? Again considering the fact that you are pointless with your existence, what are you? How could anyone ever love someone who wasn't meant to ever live? With our newfound resistance to mental attack, all the Nephilim in the world will be ripe for the taking without their . . . champion so to speak. But don't worry, we can't leave loose ends undone, now can we? So we'll kill your parents too and that human boy will forget all about you," I didn't react, didn't give away how every part of me was screaming. She couldn't see how bothered I was by it all. I looked away from her eyes over to my letterman that was folded neatly on the single chair in the room.

"We didn't want you overheating, it would've been very dangerous to combine heat with the sedative we gave you," One of the other fallen angels explained after following my gaze with a dark chuckle.

"You won't win, even if you kill me. Daddy and mom will stop you. They won't rest until they have revenge and send you all back to the . . . heh heh, hell hole you came from," Dabria lip only sneered as I smiled up at her. I was cocky . . . scared . . . and oddly at ease, all at the same time.

"There's another option . . . besides killing you," Dabria said with a grim smile and I only smirked at her, not at all impressed, "We can make you swear an oath to be a pure bred Nephilim, much like your mother. Then you can swear fealty to me and you can live forever."

"Why are they here then?" I shot back.

"Only to ensure that no matter what happens, fallen angels end up on the winning side. Come on, don't you want to be like your mommy. Isn't that every little girl's dream? To be just like the person who raised her? I wouldn't know . . . besides, we can leave your parents be if you agree to the second option," I started poking a little at Dabria and the others' minds, making sure not to alarm them of my presence.

"Keep talking," I tipped my chin up, faking interest, buying myself more time to show these dumbasses what Noel Cipriano was made of.

"You'll be rich with such a long time to accumulate money. You can still have a family, especially with that sexy boyfriend of yours. All you have to do is give up your humanity for two weeks out of the year, what's that to everything you can have over an eternity?" She was so focused on selling me on the idea of fealty, that I pinpointed the one weak spot in her mind, the spot that still hated my dad for choosing my mom, and spearheaded my way into her mind. She didn't sense me until it was too late and she screamed as I imagined sending up her world in flames, lava raining down on anything that survived, and an everlasting darkness. So surprised at her reaction, the other fallen angles dropped their guard, and I did the same. I grinned to myself and broke the handcuffs and untied my feet to stand on aching legs. A gun stuck out of a back holster on Dabria and I pulled it out as she screamed her pain.

"Now you be a good fallen angel and go back to Hell . . . and stay there while you're at it," I told her, though she was easily beyond hearing me. I shot each of them in the back, twice for good measure, and put on my letterman. I flicked the lapels to make the hood sit right again before running through the halls. Finally I made it through a huge open room, I guessed this to be a warehouse now, and headed toward the nearest exit door. I noticed a figure coming at my right and recognized my mom.

"Noel," She said breathlessly as she stopped in front of me, a huge smile on her face as she wrapped me up in a hug. From a stack of boxes, I saw a shadowed figure step out, the shiny metal of a gun glinting off the moonlight that came in through the overhead skylight.

"Mom!" I snapped, pushing her out of the way before the shot rang out, and I stumbled back. I pressed my hand to my right thigh and felt slippery liquid easily cover my fingers as I hit the floor. Mom's rage filled eyes locked on the figure heading slowly towards us. I pulled the gun that had been jabbing into my back and shoved toward my mom's feet. She didn't take her eyes off the figure as she quickly bent over and stood back up with the gun in both hands. The figure also had its gun pointed at mom, but stopped just before the darkness ended, not revealing itself from the shadows. I effortlessly ripped a piece of my shirt off and pressed it on the wound, biting my lip to keep from screaming in pain, and applied even more pressure.

_Matt! _I picked up on his mind just as it slipped within my mental range. I felt him pause, wait, wondering if he'd only imagined my voice in his head. I sent him an image of the open area of the warehouse, my mom in front of me, still facing off with whoever that was, and of my bleeding leg.

_I'm coming baby, on my way. _The door slammed from somewhere else in the warehouse.

"Nora! Noel!" Daddy yelled and then pounding footsteps from behind me. Matt's shirt was off as he crouched beside me and gingerly wrapped it around my leg, on top of the soaked fabric of my shirt. Very carefully, he picked me up in his arms, and pushed through the exit and into the cold night. There was no one on the streets as Matt ran a couple of blocks, around a corner, and I spotted dad's truck. He got me in the back and then joined me there, pulling me back against his chest as he leaned against the door, and my muscles finally released all their tension at being held. Matt unwound his shirt and it hit the floor mat with a wet plop and then my compressions followed.

"It's going to hurt Noel. I'm sorry," He warned, warm breath gliding over the back of my ear, and then he laid a gentle kiss on my neck before he set his hand on the wound. His tanned hand was glowing with a white aura from where I could see it on my leg. I bit my lip at the immediate pain, my teeth clenched together as I felt the bullet moving backwards, out of the hole, and Matt dropped it on the floor somewhere before returning his hand. I clung to his arm that was wrapped gently around my stomach and I felt sharp pain shoot through my wound again. I didn't realize the repair until I felt Matt's fingers lightly graze the round scar, visible because of the light from his hand, until the light faded, and the truck was dark once again.

"You healed me," I whispered, relaxing back into his chest, and leaned my head back to better look at the barely there features of his face in the darkness.

"One of the pluses of being your guardian angel," He replied softly, lips grazing over my temple, and we were just about to kiss before the front doors opened and my parents swung inside.

"Thank you for repaying me for saving your sorry butt all the way in Portland by making out with your boyfriend," Dad said with a smirk back at us before starting the truck. I rolled my eyes and gave mom a reassuring smile when she glanced back.

"No one said you had to come rescue me dad, I was doing just fine on my own. I could've hitchhiked my way back to Coldwater once I got out of that place and yeah, don't worry about my leg that had _a bullet_ lodged in it, I don't mind getting blood all over the back seat as I _die_," I could sense Matt rolling his eyes as he rested his head against my neck, realizing we would not be kissing any time soon.

"Matt healed you, so that sarcasm is pointless, and you don't have hitchhiker thumbs," Looking sheepishly at my dad through the rearview mirror, I did a thumbs up, and found to my disappointment that he was right, I had normal thumbs. Matt chuckled and curled my thumb back against my fist and rested his arm over mine against my stomach once again.

"Wait . . . what happened to the shooter?"

"He just disappeared, like he hadn't even been there by the time your dad came around the corner of the boxes. I think he was an archangel," Mom said with a growl and Dabria's earlier words fell into place. I showed mom, dad, and Matt then, what had happened, and I could hear the squeeze of dad's fists around the wheel as Matt pulled me a little bit closer.

"An archangel is out to get me. That's it, isn't it? The fallen angels are nothing compared to an archangel on a mission," Matt's lips touched my neck in a show of comfort and I sighed heavily at the truth in my words.

"If what Dabria said is correct, then my guess is he was using the fallen angels to do his dirty work, to make his intentions less obvious. Now that all the ones he released have been sent back to Hell . . . he was forced to finish the job himself. He must have been ill prepared though, to use just normal bullets, and he must've been unsure to have landed such a bad shot in your leg . . . though we're grateful for that obviously," Dad added the last part and I realized it was a good thing to not have hit any major organs. I settled more comfortably in Matt's arms as my mind began to slow to the rhythm of exhaustion.

"Hey mom," I muttered. She twisted in her seat to look at me with warm maternal eyes.

"Yes sweetie?"

"Volleyball tryouts are in a week and if this scar isn't gone by then. I need you to get me some cover up, please," Matt snorted, but mom smiled in understanding and nodded in assurance. With that last thought out and dealt with, I closed my eyes, and fell asleep.

Nora's POV

"Noel Cipriano and Matthew Anderson will not be at school today because they both have strep throat, so please excuse their absence," I told the office lady over the phone and she let me know they would be before we both hung up. I peeked into the living room where Matt and Noel were still curled up on the couch, fast asleep, and I smiled at the sight. Twelve hours of sleep and still counting, Patch's arms wrapped around me from behind, and I continued to watch my little girl as if she was a baby in her crib again.

"She's safe," Patch murmured in my ear from where his chin was set on my shoulder. I nodded, knowing the words were true for now, and also knowing just how much danger she was in. An archangel was after her and I wasn't sure if we'd be able to combat him as easily as threats that came before him. Unfortunately, Noel was the answer. Something about her power had caused someone up there to feel threatened, enough so that they came down here.

"We are, but she'd not. This fight isn't over Patch, not until one of them falls,"

**AN: Please review and tell me what you thought of the kidnapping and the new twist to the story!**


	12. Return from the Past

Nora's POV

The doorbell rang through the house as I finished making dinner. It couldn't be my mom, she was out of town for work, Patch would've come in through the garage, and Matt just flat out walked in without knocking anymore. I dried my hands off with a towel as I walked toward the front door; Noel was napping on the couch after volleyball practice and finishing her homework. She stirred at my footsteps, but otherwise didn't wake up. I opened the door to find a face I hadn't seen in two decades, Detective Basso.

"What are you . . ." I never thought I'd see him again after the gift of Patch being able to feel as a fallen angel. I assumed he returned to Heaven or had another assignment waiting, now he was here, on my front door step.

"May I come in? It is snowing outside after all," He said with the same emotionless, flat tone he'd used with me so many years ago. All I could do was nod and move out of the way as he stepped inside the foyer.

"Mom?" I heard Noel's sleepy voice and her footsteps approach before she stopped at the sight of the detective. She looked between us, judging the air, and then smiled as if she'd known him all of her life.

"I'm Noel Cipriano, who are you?"

"Your mother knows me as Detective Basso, so we'll just go with that," He responded clearly surprised at Noel's warm greeting.

"Oh, I know who you are, the reason my dad can feel it when I punch him," She laughed at her own little joke and then gestured into the living room, "Come and sit." We both kind of glanced at each other as Noel shuffled her finished homework in her backpack and then moved into the kitchen.

"I'm assuming she's aware," Basso said, nodding toward the still swinging door she'd passed through.

"Yes, she knows everything that's happening, Patch and I decided it will do more harm than good if we try to keep her on a need to know basis," We'd argued about it for two hours straight until Patch pointed out that Noel had taken down Dabria and other fallen angels all on her own. She wasn't a baby anymore. Eventually, I'd agreed to be open about the situation with Noel as Patch wanted, and I had to say it was kind of nice to not watch my words around her. Noel returned with two coffees and hot chocolate for herself.

"I hope you're not this friendly to all strangers," The detective said sarcastically as he took a sip of his coffee and Noel curled up in the corner of the couch that she loved the best.

"I hope you don't just appear to people from the past making them as white as ghosts," Noel shot back easily, trained by the banter between her and Patch. I realized she was referring to me and I gave her a warning look which she quickly returned with a smile.

"An archangel is out to kill you, as I'm sure you're aware. We have three suspects, but there isn't enough activity to figure out which one is truly after you. I can't release names at the risk of someone going after the wrong archangel, but I am allowed to tell you that the situation is being monitored for obvious reasons," Someone snorted and the front door shut as Matt walked in to the living room. Noel's face lit up, though she saw him every single day of the week. There never seemed to be enough time to sate her craving to be around him and I couldn't deny that I felt the exact same way about Patch. Speaking of Patch, he walked soundlessly through the kitchen door, and I realized I must have missed the opening and closing of the garage door. Matt flopped down next to Noel and they easily held to each other, Noel's legs draped across his lap, her tucked under one of his arms, and he curled his other hand around her calf. They shared a brief kiss before returning their attention to the detective. Patch sat beside me, draped an arm around my shoulders, and I filled him in on everything Basso had said so far.

"So we're supposed to wait around like sitting ducks while someone plans to kill my daughter? I don't think so. You better have some better information that that or you wouldn't have come here to waste our time," I elbowed Patch in the ribs, but I knew he was only speaking out of frustration. He wasn't used to not being able to gather every ounce of information he needed.

"I'm going to be in Coldwater, to watch for an increase in activity, and see if any of our three suspects seem to be overly interested in the area. That's what I have to tell you," With that, he stood up after downing the little bit of coffee he had left, and showed himself to the door. We sat there in silence for a few minutes, taking in the fact that nothing had changed about what we knew. Noel looked up at Matt and smiled reassuringly at something he must've said to her in mind speak.

"I hope you didn't burn dinner," Noel teased at me as she and Matt moved into the kitchen and I suddenly remembered the meal I had been preparing. Patch and I quietly waited for something to change, fall into place, just a little sign. We were still stuck though, nowhere to turn, and it was driving us just a little bit insane.

"How does Noel act as if this in no big deal?" I finally asked, looking at Patch.

"She doesn't block the ball and it's crushed down her librero's throat, does that drag her down for the rest of the game?" He asked gently and I shook my head no, already understanding what he was saying. Noel was a here and now type person. Especially with Matt, nothing really fazed her.

"Daddy! Mom! Can we order pizza? This lasagna is more closely related to a slab of concrete than food and I'm starving _now_," Noel yelled from the kitchen and I rolled my eyes. Patch and I both stood up and he kissed my forehead before ordering the pizza.

Matt's POV

"Matt, Matt, Matt, Matt," Noel had pretty much said my name in four different tones and was proceeding to ridiculous voices as I focused on the last detail of our science project. Josh hovered on the other side of the domino set, eyes scanning for all the right angles, and we finally made our way back over to a waiting Taylor and Noel. It was an energy conversion, so there had to be at least ten energy transfers, but we had fifteen for extra credit. We'd already done all the math for a portion of the lab write up that proved the energy transfers and Noel and Taylor had agreed to write the response and review since Josh and I had done most of the work for the set up of our project.

"Mmmmmmaaaaaaaaatttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt ttttttttttttttttttttttt," Noel said with exaggerated slowness, clearly bored. I chuckled at her and she grinned suggestively at me just to make Taylor say, "Oh God, get a room you two."

"Ready when you are," We'd taken over Noel's four car garage for today to make the project as large as possible. The most exciting part was that through one of the energy transfers, a volleyball would roll off an overhead board to a waiting Taylor who would set the ball to Noel, who would then proceed to hit into a bucket filled with water, some of the water would spill out into a small Dixie cup, and then the last five energy transfers would occur, turning the light back on, after the very first one turned it off. Josh pulled out the video camera and I saw the little red recording light come on. Noel's parents had silently entered to watch our hard work take place and Noel gave her dad a triumphant smile.

"Energy Transfer Project by Matt, Josh, Noel, and Taylor," I said trying to sound all official.

"Hey, why does your name get to come first, and mine comes last?" Taylor demanded and Josh held a finger to his lips for her to shush as I flicked the marble that would start the chain transaction. When it came time for their part, Noel hit the ball spot on into the bucket, and the rest was a success. Josh stopped the camera, but it still caught some of our excited cheers.

"Very impressive," Mr. Cipriano said to Noel and she faked a curtsey and then looked a little more sheepish as she approached her parents.

"Impressive enough to go to dinner and a movie with Matt?" We hadn't been on a date for four months since Basso's news on the crooked archangel. I was okay with hanging out at Noel's house all the time, I did anyway, but it would be nice to not feel her parents' eyes boring a hole in the back of my head every time we touched. Josh and Taylor were starting to clean up the project, clearly ignoring the rest of us.

"And go get dessert while you're at it," Her mom said after a moment and Noel leaped at them in a hug before throwing herself into my arms.

_Why'd they say yes?_

_Let's just say, don't be surprised when I soak the whole house in sanitizer when we get back. _I laughed against her temple before kissing it and releasing her to help with the clean up as well. It wasn't long before Taylor and Josh left and Noel had gone upstairs to put something more "date worthy" on, as she had put it. I was surprised that I wasn't given any reminders by her dad about protecting her, actually, both her parents had disappeared. Noel came down in jeans, a pair of black just below the knee Ugg boots I'd bought her as a present for her state win freshmen year, a grey, sparkly tube top that gripped her curves, and her lettermen on over it. She could've come downstairs in sweat pants and a tank top and she would've looked just as gorgeous, but I did enjoy that little extra glow she had when she knew she'd make an effort in her wardrobe. We got in my truck and Noel busied herself with looking up movie times before deciding on one and saying we should go eat dinner first. We chose a pizza place and Noel got a calzone while I got a whole pizza that would provide leftovers for later, hopefully, but between two athletes though, it was in the air.

"Things are actually starting to feel normal again," Noel said with a smile, looking up at me. We were _that _couple who felt it necessary to sit by one another at a restaurant, though the booth could've seated her on the other side.

"As normal as we ever get," I teased and her smile only broadened as she played with my fingers, my other arm wrapped around her shoulders.

"This is good though . . . really good," She said soberly with a grin stretching her lips. I looked around, scanning, making sure nothing seemed too suspicious, but Noel's relaxed demeanor was slowly affecting me until I couldn't help but enjoy the fact that we were alone.

"I love you," I told her once I met her gaze again and she pressed her face into my shoulder.

"I love you too," She replied before the waitress walked up with our food. I felt sauce go down my right cheek as I ate my pizza and Noel quickly wiped it away. I laughed, though there was nothing humorous about it, and she giggled in return.

"Matt," Noel suddenly whispered and I sensed the archangel as he walked in. It wasn't Detective Basso, to my surprise, I didn't feel threatened by his appearance, and Noel didn't seem to be on edge.

"Noel Cipriano and Matthew Anderson, may I have a seat?" He asked and we both nodded. His blond hair was slicked back and his eyes looked emotionless. I squeezed Noel's knee under the table and she briefly leaned her cheek against my shoulder.

"I am Henry, one of Basso's suspects, but I'm here to say that I am not a threat to you. There is a crooked archangel, but I don't know who it is. I've risked much to see you tonight and take my name off that list. You are in danger from someone even closer than you think. Not only will they kill you, but they'll take your soul down to hell for the fallen angels to have. Be safe," He slid away from the booth without a backwards glance.

"Did that just happen?" Noel grumbled, resting her head in her hands as she braced her elbows on the table. I just slowly took another bite of my pizza slice. What was so wrong with having one good, normal date? Was that so much to ask for? His ridiculously ominous words buzzed around in my head. Someone closer than you think? Who the hell could that be? I just kept eating pizza as I mulled over the new turn, what did any of this mean? Did it mean anything at all? What did this mean for Noel? I finally snapped out of it, five slices of pizza gone, to find Noel hadn't touched her calzone once. Stress shut down her appetite, she'd been like that since I could remember.

"Babe, you need to eat. You only had a half a sandwich at lunch," I rubbed her back and she slowly brought her head back up to look at me with big, worried eyes. Would there ever be a day when something wasn't weighing her down?

"I'm not hungry anymore," She pushed the plate away. Her eyes were black pools, soft enough to drown in, and hard enough to be made of onyx. I couldn't make her eat, but I wished she would.

"You're not in the mood for a movie, are you?" She bit her lip and turned more toward me.

"You don't deserve this Matt. You deserve someone who doesn't complicate your life with archangels and death and fighting. I don't want to be the reason that you're not happy. I don't want to drag you down," I clenched my fists under the table. Calm down. Calm down. Calm down. She's just upset and she feels cornered. She's not saying these things because she wants to break up with you. She's just trying to release her guilt. I blew out a heavy breath.

"Ma'am, could we get a box and the bill?" I asked the waitress as she passed and within a few moments I'd paid with a twenty and Noel was following me outside with the food. We didn't speak, didn't touch, and I told myself my plan would work. It would bring her back to me.

"Close your eyes," I told her once we were on the main road and she looked at me skeptically, but obeyed. I pulled up in the parking lot, cut the engine, got out, picked up Noel, and carried her to the exact spot I wanted her. Once her feet were safely planted on the ground, I stood behind her, and gently drew her hands away from her face.

"Why are we at the elementary school?" She asked, scanning the dark and empty playground before turning to me.

"Because this is where I fell in love with you," I stated simply. She rolled her eyes, half smiling upward at me, and I felt a little bit of hope returned.

"Matt. . ."

"It's cheesy but true. I know it's hard to hold on to who we are when all of this is happening. I love you, that will never change, not ever. I loved you before I even knew I had a responsibility for your safety. That responsibility has only made me love you more and more. I'll face anything with you, for you, whatever. Don't start doubting that," She grinned and stepped into my arms, burying her face against my neck and lettermen.

_I love you too. _I pressed my lips to her forehead. We were whole again.

Unknown POV

I watched the young couple as they held each other, kissed, smiled, and kissed again. They were so oblivious to my presence. They were idiots to think that they were safe just because they were together. Anyone associated with Noel Cipriano was a target, no matter how much Heaven objected to having her killed. She needed to die. The world would not be balanced until the impossible fallen angel and Nephilim hybrid was finally taken down to hell. I wouldn't strike now. She'd proven herself to be a worthy adversary against the strongest fallen angels that I'd released from Hell. So the plan was to break her down, chip away at her false feelings of safety and contentment, until finally she'd be so broken that the kill would be easy, no struggle. I already had my first target. She'd be home from out of town work in a couple of days, until then, I hoped Noel would reach her happiest peak, because the fall to depression would be that much more painful.

The young couple eventually broke from each other, the guardian angel known as Matt chasing after his love, both them laughing hysterically as if they were small children. Naive, stupid, insignificant children who needed to be shown why things had been the way they were. The world had been on a thin edge when the fallen angels disappeared, but still surviving, and then her birth threw it all up in the air. It wasn't necessarily her fault, her parents should have known better than to have a hybrid child, and they would pay dearly for their mistake as well.

**AN: I know it's been forever but it's kind of hard to find time to write in between work and chores and family in general. I'll see what I can do about preparing chapters in advance when I have free time, and then adding them as time goes on to try to update on a regular schedule again. Please review and tell me what you think of the new situation.**


	13. Only You

Noel's POV

"Gran B! I'm here!" I called through the old farmhouse my grandmother resided in. No answer, maybe she was sleeping, she'd just gotten back from being out of town for the millionth time. I was supposed to pick her up to come have dinner at our house tonight. I walked through the house, not bothering to be quiet, and stopped when I saw the piece of paper on the counter. I picked it up, my name was written in an unfamiliar scrawl on the top of it, and everything in me seemed to grow tense.

Dear Noel,

I have your grandmother. She shouldn't have been so careless as to leave her security system off after a long day of work, though that wouldn't have kept me out. I'll be at the Bo's Arcade, pool table four, do be polite, and come alone. It's not nice to bring uninvited guests like your boyfriend, mother, or father. If you do, it's one of your grandmother's limbs, and she only has so many. A trade will be in order, obviously. Be on time at 6 o'clock. I do believe you have to cancel dinner with your parents tonight, what a shame.

Sincerely,

Your Enemy

I shredded the note and threw it in the trash. For a split second, I hesitated, and then I was out the door. I had fifteen minutes to make it over to Bo's, a place my dad used to hang out as a "teenager." I'd never been there, but there was a first time for everything. The ringtone set for Matt sang through my truck, but I only slipped it into the middle console. I felt a huge wave of guilt collide into me, but I needed to take every word of that note to heart. I wouldn't risk Gran B. Mom had put her through a lot and now so had I. I pulled into the parking lot and cut my engine. Oh. God. I wished I would've grabbed my padded lettermen instead of favoring my cute blue jacket that did little to fight off the biting cold of winter in Maine. I entered the arcade and trotted down the stairs. Gran B was perched on a chair at the corner table of the basement, a martini in her hand, and I could tell she was under the false pretenses of comfort and safety.

"Noel,"

"Detective Basso?" My voice sounded half strangled as I recognized the tall form of the archangel. Lazily, he leaned against the wall. On the table, a full rack of balls was in a triangle formation, and the cue ball was motionless at the ready dot.

"You break," Basso said with an unconcerned tone as I chose my stick, keeping a watchful eye on Gran B. I could feel his hold on her; she probably thought she was safe at home right now, on the couch instead of a bar chair, a glass of wine instead of a martini, and a soap opera instead of archangels and hybrids. Dad had taught me to play pool, so I knew what I was doing. I pretended to be relaxed; though he probably knew just how tightly twisted I was on the inside.

"Leave her out of this," I said after we both silently watched a solid land in the right corner pocket after my break.

"It got your attention, didn't it? Your parents were still so grateful about that gift I gave your father that they didn't bother being suspicious of why I was really in Clearwater. A perfect alibi was all I needed to be close enough to keep tabs on you until I could find the right time to get you alone. Now, here's the trade. We send good old granny home in your truck and you come with me. Special means for your death that will guarantee you won't be able to stop me,"

"Devil craft?"

"Yes," I watched him hit a double and I countered with a triple before carefully circling the table, mentally poking at my grandmother, but I was inexperienced with the strength of an archangel's grasp. I knew they weren't invincible, but I didn't know if I necessarily had the tools to make him falter in his control. Even if I did, how would I convince Gran B to just leave me and run or make up some fake memory as to why she ended up here in the first place?

"My daddy will come for you, he'll kill you, but not before torturing every single nerve in your body until you're begging for mercy that you don't deserve. You won't go unpunished for killing me," I kept Matt out of the picture. More than ever I wanted to sprint to my truck, grab my phone, and call him to come. I wanted to feel the reassurance of his presence, it was selfish, but it was what I wanted. Instead, my daddy was a safe threat, someone who would follow through on something like that, because I didn't want to think about what my death would do to Matt, or what it would mean for him as a guardian angel.

"You think you have the biggest and baddest daddy on the street, don't you?"

"I don't think, _I know _I do," He snorted, but I saw something in his eyes shift and recalculate. That's right, make him make a mistake, dad said that all the time in my sparring lessons. Keep your head, think it through, don't just admit to the fact that you don't have control. You can easily take it back, just do it like a dance.

"I'm an arch angel," He asserted with a growl and sneered at him.

"I'm my father's daughter," I shot back with equal malice.

"Come on," He nodded up the stairs as I nailed the 8 ball in the corner pocket after calling it. Gran B got up with ease and followed Detective Basso. I handed her my keys and watched her drive away.

"My hold will wear off when she gets home, giving me plenty of time," I barely heard his words as I rounded the corner of the building, sprinting at full speed. I could hear his own footsteps in pursuit, but I only ran faster. I mentally mapped out my choices for escape, so I zigzagged through old alleyways, leaping a few fences, and coming out on the main street downtown. Finding a public parking lot, I found a car in the security camera's blind spot, and easily hotwired it. One of dad's lessons.

"Not today asshole," I growled, leaving the parking lot as fast as possible. I saw Basso on the street as I passed him, but I had my mind on mental lockdown. He wouldn't be getting to me, not in that way anyway. His gaze was ice cold as we made eye contact and I headed home, speeding the entire way. Just as I pulled up, dad's truck was peeling down the driveway before he slammed on his brakes. I barely had time to get out of the stolen car as I was wrapped up in a massive hug from him.

"Daddy," I whispered, clinging back. He pulled away just enough for me to see his face, and then I saw it. Those weren't our eyes. They were ice blue.

"What the . . ." I tried to step back but his grip on my arms grew painful as he suddenly wore a cynical smile.

"Nice try," He whispered.

"NO!" I screamed, but found my hands and legs chained. I slowly followed the line, seeing it disappeared within the cement wall. I looked around, but it took a while for my eyes to dilate to the pitch black darkness of the room. A door opened and Basso stood in the entrance. I didn't escape, I realized in complete horror. The whole fiasco had been planted by Basso. I'd never made it home.

"You went a lot more quietly as I gave that situation. You were so complacent getting in my vehicle after I allowed your grandmother to drive away. You really thought it would be that easy to escape an arch angel, truly? What did that 'daddy' of yours teach you? I mean, do you have any idea how long you've been unconscious?" He snickered, flicking on a too-bright light and I had to rapidly blink as my eyes were forced to adjust again.

"Daddy kill you," I tried to think back to my last memories, but it wasn't worth the expenditure of energy if I wanted to escape.

"Not after I frame another arch angel in my place. I'd been meaning to get rid of Henry for quite some time," He leaned lazily against the wall. I felt disappointed at myself. I was an idiot. I'd done it all for the right reasons, but I was still just a stupid girl who had dove in head first and found the dark water to be bottomless and lightless. I should've been better. I should've been perfect. After all, that's what everyone had glorified me to be. Straight A student, homecoming royalty, superstar athlete, and yet, I was so imperfect as to get myself caught by the one person my parents and Matt had been blindly trying to protect me from.

"He won't kill you."

"I'm so glad you've come to terms with that fact. I—"

"I'll kill you," I don't know what snapped, but the over competitive bitch within me came alive, thrived, and was enraged by my lack of control. I was strong. I was ruthless. I was done. So I hit hard with every mental trick I'd ever learned. I imagined the darkest nights, the hottest fires, the most powerful destruction rushing at him, colliding into him, and dragging Basso down into his own dark abyss. He moaned, going to his knees, but I forced it on still. There would be no giving up. There would be no stopping. He'd asked for this when he'd come at me. When he'd made a single move against everyone I loved. There was no backing down when I felt threatened. He screamed aloud, painful, blood curdling, but I only let it hit that much harder. Then his brain snapped, let go, and he was a limp heap on the floor.

The moment he was completely dead, the chains crumbled and turned to ash, probably bound together with the no longer existent devil craft.

"Told you so," I spit on his body as I stood up. It was an abandoned factory to the looks of the inside as I stumbled outside. It was in the middle of a field, an old paved parking lot for the workers, and there didn't seem to be anything for miles around. I rolled my eyes and began on my jog on the dirt road, not sure where I was, but it had to be better than the place of a dead man. I spotted a car, probably Basso's, and was surprised to find it open. Then again, who would steal a car in the middle of no where? When I saw the highway and knew my way home, then I was ecstatic. I drove too fast, but the midnight darkness promised lack of other cars and hopefully police. I almost cried, coming down my street, recognizing Matt's truck in the driveway, and slammed on the brakes. I didn't even bother closing the driver's door as I stumbled out of it. Harsh light broke through the darkness and I recognized the silhouette before we were both in a mad frenzy to get to one another and then a crushing embrace.

"Matt," I whimpered before realizing tears were pouring down my face in my joy. He didn't say anything in return. I could feel where his fingers clung to my back and his face was buried in my hair. There was no space left between us, but we erased any possibility of it as we finally kissed. It was everything. It was perfection. It was us. I sobbed between another passionate press of lips before we finally parted and I was able to see his clear blue eyes.

"Your home," He whispered in a desperate tone, as if he was terrified to believe I was real. I felt fresh tears fall at all he had endured because of me. I pressed my hands to either side of his face and guided him into another kiss, less rough this time, more gentle and reassuring. A clearing of the throat made me peek around Matt. Mom was practically shaking she was fighting to contain herself so much as tears also streamed down her face and dad's eyes were stripped down to the bareness of relief. I released Matt and took a couple of quick strides over to them, hugging tightly, whispering murmured greetings that probably didn't even sound like words.

"Let's get you inside," Mom ushered us all into my house and Matt and I immediately curled ourselves around each other on the couch. It felt like the best dream I'd ever had. He kissed me again as my mom disappeared in the kitchen to probably bring out food and dad rearranged the couch pillows so he and mom could comfortably face me. Once mom sat down, I played back the mental reel for them to see everything that I remembered had transpired. Matt held protectively to me and cussed through what Basso had done.

"Wait a second, how long have I been gone?" Mom's bottom lip quivered as dad's gaze met mine.

"Two weeks," Matt crushed me closer and all their pains seemed explained in that moment. It wasn't just missing me or wondering where I was, it was the amount of time I'd been gone.

"How did he keep me under for two weeks?"

"When someone plants a memory like the one of you escaping, it's so realistic to the brain that when you realize it was lie, you become traumatized, and the recovery can be long. You probably floated in and out of consciousness. Just because he told you he made it when you remember him saying it, doesn't mean you didn't figure that out at a much earlier time," Dad explained gently, holding mom as she finally stopped crying.

"Two weeks," I whispered before realizing I probably looked like hell. The plate of food mom had set on the coffee table suddenly seemed to take up the whole room as my stomach grumbled to life. I ate quickly, not even sure of what she prepared, but feeling much more solid once I was done.

"I love you two," I reminded them as I stood up and hugged them tightly, daddy longer than mom. There was a greater amount of fear there for him. We both hated to risk failure and that's what my death would've been. I smiled dazzlingly for them both, though I'm sure my teeth probably didn't look sparkling white. Matt followed me upstairs and got in bed while I finally took a well needed shower and teeth brushing, avoiding the mirror at all costs until my work was done, and I recognized exactly who I was.

"I missed you so much," He murmured in my hair as I crawled into bed with him, nodding into his neck as he tangled together in a human braid. I didn't care where one of us started and the other began, we were better this way, better together.

"I love you," I whispered, finally relieved that there was no longer fear there. The threat to us was gone and we were finally a "normal" teenage couple.

"I love you, all of you, only you,"


End file.
